The Mortgage Stabilization and Relief Act, P.L. 2008, c.127, enacted January 9, 2009 (MRSA), requires (i) all creditors that institute a mortgage foreclosure proceeding in the Superior Court of New Jersey to make quarterly reports to the New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance (DOBI) of the number of foreclosures instituted and other information on mortgages being foreclosed and (ii) DOBI post the reported information on its web site. This is a posting of that data.

Also posted here is data on the filing of foreclosure complaints compiled by the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) in the New Jersey Judiciary, which is the official custodian of these numbers. These numbers reflect actual foreclosure complaints filed in the Superior Court of New Jersey and should be considered the definitive numbers.  

The DOBI postings reflect data reported by creditors including state chartered banks, savings banks, savings associations, credit unions and New Jersey licensed mortgage bankers. This reporting requirement was first imposed in 2009, but not all New Jersey financial institutions have reported their data, while others have experienced technical difficulties in reporting.

In addition, a great number of the mortgages being foreclosed upon are held by federally-chartered lenders who are not regulated by DOBI. Creditors’ unfamiliarity with the new reporting requirements and the limited scope of DOBI’s regulatory authority are factors which should be considered when reviewing this data. DOBI will continue efforts to conform the data reported to DOBI to that compiled by the AOC.  

For more information on foreclosure filings, contact the Office of the Superior Court Clerk at 609-421-6100.