Housing affordability isn't just hurting buyers: More homeowners are falling behind on their mortgages

Housing affordability challenges are weighing on not only would-be buyers, but also on a growing share of existing homeowners, new data suggests.

Late-stage mortgage delinquencies — those with payments at least 90 days past due — rose 18.6% in December from a year earlier, according to new research from credit scoring company VantageScore. While the share of mortgages at that stage of nonpayment remains small at about 0.2% — up from just under 0.17% in December 2024 — the growth is occurring at a faster pace than for delinquencies involving other types of consumer credit, including auto loans, credit cards and personal loans, said Rikard Bandebo, chief strategy officer and chief economist for VantageScore.

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Compared with the nonpayment levels seen during the financial crisis in 2008 to 2010, “this is a considerably lower delinquency rate,” Bandebo said. “But it’s still a concerning sign that [delinquencies] are increasing.”

As of the third quarter last year, mortgage delinquencies of all stages were 1.78% of outstanding home loans, up slightly from 1.74% a year earlier, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. In the first quarter of 2010, that share was 11.49%.