Aug. 25--The latest mortgage delinquency figures show that the recession is creeping into West Virginia, area bankers said, but banks in this area are still bucking the trend.

West Virginia's delinquency rate for mortgages increased during the second quarter of 2009, and the state's standing relative to the other 49 states worsened, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) second quarter National Delinquency Survey.

West Virginia's overall delinquency rate -- described as a percentage of all mortgage loans -- rose from 8.07 percent at the end of the first quarter (March 31) to 9.33 percent at the end of the second quarter (June 30).

West Virginia's first-quarter rate was better than the national average of 8.22 percent, but is now worse than the national average of 8.86 percent.

Its relative standing worsened from 15th -- meaning only 14 states had a higher rate -- on March 31 to 13th.

The numbers mean the state has been, and will continue to be, "insulated but not isolated" from economic trends, said Doug Leech, president and CEO of Morgantown-based Centra Bank. He noted that national unemployment trends are now showing up in West Virginia.

Other area bank officials echoed that thought.

Brian Thomas, president and CEO of Bruceton Mills-based Clear Mountain Bank said West Virginia's economy typically lags behind national trends.

Pete Jaworski, Wheeling-based WesBanco's executive vice president and chief credit officer, said as the national recession drags on and uncertainty lingers about the stimulus plan and other issues, West Virginia is beginning to see a ripple effect. "West Virginia is obviously not immune" from the recession, he said.

WesBanco President and CEO Paul Limbert referred The Dominion Post to Jaworski for questions.

Survey numbers

West Virginia slipped from fifth to fourth nationally on mortgages 30 days past due -- from 4.12 percent to 4.69 percent -- worse than the national average of 3.57 percent.

The state's most dramatic shift appeared in loans 60 days past due. At the end of the first quarter, West Virginia was 20th, with a rate of 1.45 percent, better than the national average of 1.56 percent.

In the second quarter, West Virginia climbed to a tie for eighth, at 1.82 percent. Alabama had the same rate. The national average was 1.62 percent.

That state moved from 25th to 23rd for loans 90 or more days past due: from 2.5 percent in the first quarter to 2.82 percent. The second-quarter national average was 3.67 percent.