Homeowners in foreclosure not paid mortgage for 17 months: Report

U.S. homeowners facing foreclosure action haven't made a mortgage payment in an average of 17 months, compared to 11 months two years ago, and the time frame may increase, according to a USA Today report.

High volume of mortgage defaults, time-consuming reviews for loan modifications and the robo-signers controversy in tens of thousands of cases are slowing banks and mortgage servicers from completing foreclosures, the report says.

According to LPS Applied Analytics, which tracks 37 million mortgages, last year in December, an average homeowner in foreclosure went without making a mortgage payment for 510 days, compared to 410 days in January.

Before the foreclosure crisis, the average number of days was about 250, USA Today cited LPS Senior Vice President Herb Blecher as saying.

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