In November 2025, the Enterprises executed 17,217 foreclosure prevention activities, totaling 7,298,149 since the conservatorships began in September 2008. Permanent loan modifications have accounted for about 38.7% of these actions. Since the conservatorships started in September 2008, there have been 2,823,194 permanent loan modifications, including 6,309 in November 2025.
In November, only term extensions accounted for about 36.2% of loan modifications. Sixty-three percent of all loan modifications made during the month included principal forbearance. After completing a forbearance plan, the number of borrowers who got payment deferrals dropped from 6,208 in October 2025 to 5,493 in November.
The number of forbearance plans that were initiated fell from 17,075 in October 2025 to 16,511 in November. But at the end of November 2025, there were 48,737 loans in forbearance, up from 42,112 at the end of October. This amounts to roughly 0.16% of all loans that were serviced and 7.92% of all delinquent loans.
Forbearance Plans Inventory — 2025:
Mortgage Rates vs. Refinance Volume
In reaction to the United Kingdom’s Brexit vote to leave the European Union, Treasury rates dropped as people around the world fled to the security of government debt. As the Federal Reserve was expected to raise interest rates, mortgage rates increased in November and December of 2016. In reaction to a growing economy, the Federal Reserve increased the target federal funds rate to 0.75% on December 14, 2016.
As the Federal Reserve followed a consistent course to normalize its target rate, mortgage rates decreased in 2017: On March 16, June 15, and December 14, the target Federal Funds rate was increased to 1%, 1.25%, and 1.5%, respectively.
The target Federal Funds rate was gradually increased quarterly to 1.75%, 2%, 2.25%, and 2.5% in 2018 when mortgage rates peaked. The Federal Reserve predicted that the US economy would continue to grow steadily in 2018. As the effects of the China-US trade war on global commerce slowed economic expansion in 2019, mortgage rates trended lower. Further, as the target Federal Funds rate was lowered to almost zero levels in 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic-driven decline in economic activity, mortgage rates continued to decline.
Overall, in Q3, mortgage rates increased by more than 3% due to worries about inflation. As the Federal Reserve completed a series of hikes to the target Federal Funds rate in response to ongoing inflationary indicators, mortgage rates kept rising.
Additional Key Findings:
- At the end of November 2025, the serious delinquency rate jumped to 0.57%, while the 30-59-day delinquency rate increased to 1.17%.
- In November 2025, foreclosure starts fell 21.0% to 7,307 while third-party and foreclosure sales fell 20.3% to 1,050.
- Despite constant mortgage rates, the overall volume of refinances fell in November 2025 compared to October 2025.
- The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate in November was 6.24%, essentially unchanged from 6.25% the month before.
- After peaking at 82.4% during the previous three years, the percentage of cash-out refinances remained stable at 36.5% of all refinances in November 2025.
- The share of borrowers refinancing into 15-year mortgages declined to 14.4 percent in November, as the rate spread between 15- and 30-year fixed rate mortgages continued to decrease.
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