Nov. defaults on privately insured U.S. mortgages rose 34.7% vs. the year before to 61,300, as more homeowners fell behind on payments. That's the most since the Mortgage Insurance Cos. of America began tracking data in '01. Mortgage insurers such as MGIC Investment Corp., (MTG) PMI Group (MTG) and Radian Group (MTG) lost money in Q3.
Happy new year, housing industry. It's going to be a difficult year....
