The percentage of mortgage borrowers late on their payments declined for a 22nd consecutive month in January
However, shorter-term categories saw their rates increase on a year-over-year basis, which could be a troubling sign as the U.S. economy moves toward
In January, 2.8% of all outstanding mortgages were 30 days late or more on their payments, including foreclosures. This was down 20 basis points from December and 50 basis points versus January 2022.
"The annual decrease in overall delinquencies was primarily driven by a large decline in the share of mortgages six months or more past due," Molly Boesel, CoreLogic principal economist, said in a press release. "Despite the drop in overall delinquencies, the foreclosure rate has slowly crept up."
Loans that were 120 days late or more, including those already in the foreclosure process, saw 60 basis point decline in the rate, to 0.9% from 1.5% one year prior. Between 90 and 119 days, another component of the seriously-delinquent category, the rate was unchanged at 0.3%.
However, a subset of that — the share of loans in any stage of the foreclosure process — was up slightly over the same period. The share rose to 0.3% from 0.2%.
The percentage of mortgages between 30 and 59 days late on their payments grew to 1.3% in January from 1.2% for the same month in 2022. Those between 60 and 89 days delinquent increased to 0.4% from 0.3% in the same time frame.
Even as
No state had an overall increase in delinquencies but two local Florida markets did. Punta Gorda had a 2.1 percentage point rise in total late payments and 1.4 percentage point gain in serious delinquencies, while Cape Coral rose 2 percentage points and 1.5 percentage points respectively. The only other market where total delinquencies rose was Mansfield, Ohio, where they were up 50 basis points.
