The share of all mortgages in some stage of delinquency—30 days or more past due—was 2.8% in October 2023, according to the latest Loan Performance Insights Report from CoreLogic. The share was unchanged on both a month-over-month and year-over-year basis.
“U.S. mortgage delinquency rates remained healthy in October, with the overall delinquency rate unchanged from a year earlier and the serious delinquency rate remaining at a historic low,” says Molly Boesel, principal economist for CoreLogic. “Most of the decline in the serious delinquency rate stems from a decrease in later-stage delinquencies. Importantly, there was no increase in the foreclosure rate, indicating borrowers in later stages of delinquencies are finding alternatives to defaulting on their home loans.”
According to CoreLogic, adverse delinquency rates (60 to 89 days past due), serious delinquencies (90 days or more past due, including loans in foreclosure), the foreclosure inventory rate (the share of mortgage rates in some stage of the foreclosure process), and the transition rate (the share of mortgages that transitioned from current to 30 days past due) all were below 1% of all mortgages in October. The share of early-stage delinquencies (30 to 59 days past due) inched up to 1.4% from 1.3% in October 2022.
In addition to strong mortgage performance, CoreLogic said home equity gains rebounded in the latter part of 2023, with the average borrower earning $20,000 year over year in the third quarter. According to CoreLogic, the positive trend in home equity gains should keep “most borrowers from experiencing foreclosures in the coming months.”
In October, nine states saw overall mortgage delinquency rates increase year over year, led by Hawaii (up 0.5 percentage points) and Idaho (up 0.2 percentage points). Fifteen states had unchanged delinquency rates in October, and the remaining 35 states had annual delinquency rates decline between 0.4% and 0.1%. Just three metros posted annual increases in serious delinquency rates in October: Kahului-Wailuku-Lahaina, Hawaii; Punta Gorda, Florida; and Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Florida.
