According to an article in the Dallas Morning News , Texans continue to fall behind on their mortgage payments and face foreclosure at a rate that’s outpacing many other states. In the 2nd quarter of 2009, more than one in ten Texas mortgages were either late or already in foreclosure and Texas ranked 17th nationally among states ranked by the percentage of late mortgage payments.

The article said:

“Nationwide, a record 9.24 percent of residential loans were delinquent in the quarter. The closely watched measure includes all mortgages that are at least one payment behind… In Texas, the greatest share of loans facing foreclosure are subprime mortgages. In the second quarter, 28.49 percent of subprime adjustable-rate loans in the state were past due. That compares with an 8.18 percent delinquency rate for prime mortgages statewide. About 30 percent of Texas mortgage holders are considered non-prime borrowers, compared with only 19 percent on average nationwide.”

Many of those subprime borrowers facing foreclosure are unable to fight successfully and save their home.  Job losses, reduced income or even divorce or illness may make it difficult to negotiate with the lender for a mortgage modification or other measures designed to stop foreclosure.  And as the number of job losses increase we will continue to see a rise in foreclosures not only in the subprime market; but in the prime market which is populated by many who hold/held jobs that were considered secure, that is until the crisis. As the crisis worsens, many more prime and subprime borrowers may find themselves unemployed and unable to afford their mortgage.