Housing Finance and Foreclosures

As the country grapples with a financial crisis and credit markets have tightened, issues of housing finance and foreclosures have moved to the forefront for policymakers, as well as for individual families and neighborhoods. We seek to better understand current and historic trends in mortgage lending for homeowners, as well as in multi-family housing finance. Our research explores the future of Government Sponsored Enterprises (GSEs); the relationships between subprime lending, foreclosures and race; as well as the impact of foreclosures on property values, children’s education, and public safety.

We also release an annual analysis of mortgage lending data made public through the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA), as well as Quarterly Housing Updates that analyze six key indicators of housing market performance in New York City.

Current Research Agenda

The Furman Center, along with NYU’s Institute for Education Policy and several of our research partners, was recently awarded a MacArthur Foundation grant to study the impact of housing instability, caused by foreclosures, on children’s performance in school.

Our current reseearch projects include:

  • Impact Of Foreclosures On School Mobility And Performance
  • Modifications Of Distressed Mortgages
  • Seriously Delinquent Mortgage Borrower Outcomes
  • The Impact Of Foreclosures On Neighborhood Crime
  • The Recent Resurgence of FHA Lending
  • The Six Trillion Dollar Loss Of Housing Wealth In The Great Recession: What Are The Long-Term Consequences?

View all Housing Finance and Foreclosures research projects »

For a list of all the Furman Center’s current research projects, download our Current Research Agenda.

Featured Researcher

Max Weselcouch

Max Weselcouch is the Data Manager and a Research Analyst at the Furman Center.  Prior to joining the Furman Center, she was a research assistant at RESI of Towson University, a non-profit economics research group located in Baltimore, Maryland.  While at RESI, she devoted most of her time to studying welfare and subsidized childcare expenses in Maryland.  Max received a B.A. with honors in Mathematics and Dance from Goucher College in 2005.  She also spent a year studying biostatistics at John Hopkins University as a mental health trainee sponsored by the National Institute on Mental Health.

Latest News & Events

Latest Publications

  • Data Brief

    The State of Mortgage Lending in New York City

    The analysis of recent mortgage trends from the 2011 State of New York City’s Housing and Neighborhoods report finds that home purchase loans originated in 2010 increased 11 percent over 2009, interrupting what had been a steady downward trend in annual lending since 2005. Much of the rise is due to a 22 percent increase in the number of homebuyers taking out mortgages in low- and moderate-income neighborhoods. The number of loans issued to white, black, and Hispanic borrowers in New York City all increased in 2010, while lending to Asian borrowers decreased slightly.

    The Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy. May 2012.

    housing, housing finance, mortgages

  • White Papers

    A Canary in the Mortgage Market? Why the Recent FHA and GSE Loan Limit Reductions Deserve Attention

    Explores the potential implications of recent reductions in the maximum loan size that can be guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (Government-Sponsored Enterprises or GSEs), or insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) in many parts of the country. The changes, which went into effect on Oct. 1, 2011, represent the first step in a long-term policy goal to reduce the federal government’s current role in the mortgage system. They will also be a significant test of the private mortgage finance system.

    Josiah Madar and Mark Willis. October 2011.

    housing finance, housing prices, mortgages

  • Working Paper

    Determinants of the Incidence of Loan Modifications

    Loan modifications ensure that borrowers avoid foreclosure and save their credit record. These modifications are also beneficial to the neighborhoods in which these borrowers reside, preventing vacancies and high rates of turnover. This analysis looks at loan delinquency and repayment plan data from New York City borrowers to provide the strongest predictors of modifications or liquidation of property. In this paper, we answer key questions about loan modifications, including how the identity, property or neighborhood of the borrower affects the likelihood of receiving a modification. We also look at the role of residential segregation, as well as the identity of the loan’s servicer as an influence on variations in borrower access to loan modifications.

    Vicki Been, Mary Weselcouch, Ioan Voicu, Scott Murff. September 2011.

    foreclosures, mortgage, neighborhoods

  • White Papers

    Navigating Uncertain Waters: Mortgage Lending in the Wake of the Great Recession

    This report summarizes our February 4, 2011 Roundtable of the same name, and provides an in-depth exploration of credit availability and lending patterns during the recession.

    The Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy. August 2011.

    homeownership, housing finance, housing prices, mortgage foreclosures, mortgages

View more Housing Finance and Foreclosures publications »

Housing Finance and Foreclosures in the News