As we previously reported, foreclosures are on the rise. But so too are ‘strategic’ defaults.
What is a ‘strategic default’? It is a decision by a borrower to stop making payments on a debt despite having the financial ability to make the payment. For instance, the large financial firm, Morgan Stanley, recently made the calculated decision to give up five San Francisco towers it purchased at the peak of the booming real estate market.
Many individual borrowers are also turning to the same strategy used by Morgan Stanley, and others, and are seeking solutions to the problems brought in by the unstable real estate market. And the reason ‘strategic defaults’ are becoming so popular are for reasons we might consider, and for other reasons we might not necessarily consider.
The two primary reasons appears to be (1) negative equity in the property, and (2) a more borrower friendly environment. The second reason should be kept in mind as we consider the current administration’s continued push to encourage more banks to offer loan modifications, and principal reduction coupled with the Fed’s continued policy to keep interest rates low.
A recent Morgan Stanley report reveals that many U.S. homeowners are opting to walk away from mortgages that they can afford, and that these ‘strategic’ defaults are accounting for an increasing share of defaults. About 12% of all mortgage defaults in February were ‘strategic’, and that is up from 4% in mid 2007. The same report indicates that borrowers will likely stop paying their mortgages the higher their credit scores and the larger their loans.
This following report that ran on the NBC nightly news provides a snap shot into this growing trend.
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