Fannie Mae Mortgage Defaults Reach Record in July

Mortgages which were at least 90 days late or in foreclosure among the single-family mortgages that Fannie Mae owns or guarantees rose to 4.17 percent in July. This is up from 3.94 percent in June and 1.45 percent a year earlier. The news comes in Fannie Mae's monthly volume summary released today.

The multifamily delinquency rate fared better. However, it also rose, up 0.05 percentage point to 0.56 percent in July. A year ago it was 0.13 percent.

Also noted in the monthly summary, Fannie Mae's portfolio was at $779.4 billion. This is an annualized 1.5 percent decrease for the year to date.

You'll recall that in early September of 2008, the federal government seized control of Fannie Mae and smaller Freddie Mac. The seizures were the result of concerns about shrinking capital at the congressionally chartered companies.