Interest rate resets on many home loan modifications and home equity lines of credit seem to be on a collision course that may create a hardship for many borrowers who didn’t expect to be so vulnerable. HELOC originations peaked in 2005 and most of those second liens are due to reset in 2015. The peak year for first-lien modifications was in 2010 and most of those proprietary and government-sponsored modifications are also due to reset in 2015.
A simultaneous hike in the monthly payments of both first and second liens is “sort of a double whammy,” says Aaron Horvath of Springboard Nonprofit Consumer Credit Management. Homeowners will have to tighten their budgets to afford the higher payments. But for some borrowers who have been barely able to make reduced mortgage payments, the resets “could be the straw that breaks the camel’s back,” he says.
The Treasury Department launched its Home Affordable Modification Program in 2009 and modification activity peaked in 2010, when servicers completed 512,700 workouts. At the time, the prevailing mortgage rate was 5%, but servicers reduced the borrowers’ rates to 2% to make payments more affordable. The terms of HAMP mods include rate resets after 5 years, in 100 basis point annual increments – by 2015, those HAMP mods from 2010 could experience the first of three annual 100-basis point resets to bring the interest rate up to 5%. With a 100-basis point step up in the rate, the median monthly payment increase is about $95 each year, with the majority of HAMP borrowers experiencing 2 to 3 rate increases, according to Treasury estimates. “This (concept) works well when borrowers are experiencing income growth,” Horvath says. “But many borrowers have not experienced wage increases and some are still underwater on their mortgages.”
Meanwhile, a HELOC rate reset could add another $100 to $300 to a borrower’s monthly mortgage obligations. Under Consumer Financial Protection Bureau rules, servicers must notify borrowers of a reset 120 days in advance. This notice must include contact information for borrowers to contact housing counselors for advice and assistance.
“There are going to be millions of people dealing with these resets” over the next few years, Horvath says. Many HAMP borrowers facing rate increases may qualify for alternative modifications, including a HAMP Tier 2 which offers borrowers a fixed rate based on the current mortgage rate and a new 40-year term. The current mortgage rate on a HAMP Tier 2 mod is 4.25%. Treasury officials wanted to keep this option open for the borrowers facing resets, which is one reason the department extended the HAMP program through 2016.