A May 16 report from the Mortgage Bankers Association added another bright note to the housing market, with the percentage of U.S. homeowners behind on their mortgages falling to the lowest level since 2008. The delinquency rate for residential mortgage loans decreased 7.4% during the first quarter of 2012.

Foreclosures are not improving at the same rate, however. The percentage of loans in the foreclosure process as of March 31, 2012 was 4.4%, relatively unchanged from the previous quarter and down one basis point from 4.5% a year ago.

CoreLogic, a provider of information, analytics and business services, released the most recent figures for its monthly National Foreclosure Report, reporting 69,000 completed foreclosures in March 2012. This compares with 85,000 in March 2011 and 66,000 in February 2012. 

According to a report by CoreLogic, a provider of information, analytics and business services, the United States saw more than 860,000 completed foreclosures between January 2011 and January 2012. There were 69,000 completed foreclosures in January 2012, 65,000 the previous month. In January 2011, the completed foreclosure rate was 80,000.

Waypoint Real Estate Group, one of the nation's leading acquirers of distressed, single-family properties, and GI Partners, a mid-market private equity firm, have announced a partnership where they will acquire and then rent out more than $250 million in single-family homes. Ultimately, GI hopes to invest more than $1 billion in distressed and foreclosed homes over the next two years, with Waypoint managing the acquisitions and rental conversions.

The Occupy Wall Street movement, once focused on financial institutions and the unequal distribution of wealth, has broadened to include the collapse of the housing market and its effect on the American family, according to an article in the Los Angeles Times. 

The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) weighed in on the disappointing housing starts figures released Tuesday.

Nationwide housing starts declined 5% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 571,000 units in August.

The U.S. Michigan Court of Appeals has upheld the construction lien of Stock Building Supply over AmTrust Bank in a residential foreclosure case, according to an opinion released on Aug. 2. 

In an attempt to shore up the housing market and also provide more affordable rentals, the federal government is considering the idea of turning some of the 250,000 foreclosed homes it owns into rental units. On Aug. 10, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced it was seeking public input on “new options” for selling single-family homes owned by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. 

The first face-to-face meeting between top bank executives and government officials over irregularities in foreclosure procedures may be followed by months of further negotiations, according to a report in the Los Angeles Times.