DALLAS, April 18, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The Mortgage Fraud Index from MortgageDaily.com has fallen 69 percent over the past year to the lowest level since early 2008, while the dollar volume of associated loans was off by more than half. But the lull might only be temporary.
The Mortgage Fraud Index was 814 in the fourth-quarter, falling from 2634 a year earlier. The index -- which reflects both the number and dollar volume of cases tracked by the mortgage fraud blog FraudBlogger.com -- reached its lowest point since the first-quarter 2008's 713.
The dollar volume of mortgages tied to the criminal and civil cases dropped to a three-year low of $0.9 billion.
The drop reflected a 36 percent annual contraction in the number of cases that saw activity during the period.
Index by Quarter
Period |
Index |
Amount |
# Cases |
|
Q4 2010 |
814 |
$867,318,214 |
126 |
|
Q3 2010 |
1007 |
$1,850,531,120 |
151 |
|
Q4 2009 |
2634 |
$1,922,002,499 |
197 |
|
"The decline in the Mortgage Fraud Index itself, as well as a drop in the number of cases and lower dollar volume, followed the Department of Justice's launch of Operation Broken Trust," Mortgage Daily Founder and Publisher Sam Garcia said. "The activity suggests that some resources might have been diverted from prosecution of real estate crimes."
California moved from No. 2 in the previous report to No. 1 -- trading positions with Florida. New York maintained its top-three standing.
Top States by Index
State |
Index |
|
California |
93 |
|
Florida |
73 |
|
New York |
73 |
|
Pennsylvania |
60 |
|
Virginia |
60 |
|
Virginia, which did not rank in the top five during the third-quarter, ranked at least fifth in both categories this time around. The state's dollar volume more than tripled from the prior quarter.
Top States by Amount
State |
Amount |
|
California |
$205,366,515 |
|
New York |
$122,249,646 |
|
Pennsylvania |
$105,144,929 |
|
Virginia |
$69,675,970 |
|
Florida |
$59,896,409 |
|
The volume of case activity has recently risen based on recent FraudBlogger.com entries -- suggesting the upcoming first-quarter 2011 index could increase.
Full Mortgage Fraud Index report:
http://www.mortgagedaily.com/FraudIndex.asp
Mortgage Fraud News:
http://www.mortgagedaily.com/MortgageFraud.asp?spcode=pr
Mortgage fraud Blog:
http://www.FraudBlogger.com
About MortgageDaily.com
Founded in 1998, http://www.MortgageDaily.com provides online mortgage news and analysis for the mortgage industry. More than 30,000 people visit MortgageDaily.com each month.
CONTACT:
Holly Himelright
[email protected]
3811-700 Turtle Creek Blvd.
Dallas, TX 75219
SOURCE MortgageDaily.com
WANT YOUR COMPANY'S NEWS FEATURED ON PRNEWSWIRE.COM?
Newsrooms &
Influencers
Digital Media
Outlets
Journalists
Opted In
Share this article