CoreLogic report: Serious mortgage delinquency drops to 25-year low

The share of U.S. home mortgages that fell into serious delinquency — representing borrowers who are three months or more late on payments — dropped to the lowest level in nearly 25 years in August at 0.9 percent, according to the Loan Performance Insights Report from Irvine, California-based property information and analytics firm CoreLogic.

Nationwide, overall mortgage delinquencies and foreclosures also remained near historic lows, a clear sign that most U.S. homeowners can currently cover their monthly payments. But as interest rates have approached 8 percent in October, more prospective buyers could be sidelined, CoreLogic said.

Of U.S. states, Idaho and Utah posted small annual increases (both up by 0.1 percentage point) in overall mortgage delinquency rates in August. Overall delinquency rates were unchanged year over year in Arizona, Florida, Indiana and Oregon. The remaining states’ annual delinquency rates declined between 0.1 and 0.8 percentage points.

In August, 2.6 percent of all mortgages in the U.S. were in some stage of delinquency (30 days or more past due, including those in foreclosure), representing a 0.2 percentage point decrease compared with 2.8 percent in August 2022 and a 0.1 percentage point decrease from July.

To gain a complete view of the mortgage market and loan performance health, CoreLogic examines all stages of delinquency. In August 2023, the U.S. delinquency and transition rates and their year-over-year changes, were as follows:

• Early-StageDelinquencies (30 to 59 days past due): 1.3 percent, up from 1.23 percent in August 2022.
• Adverse Delinquency (60 to 89 days past due): 0.43 percent, up from 0.33 percent in August 2022.
• Serious Delinquency (90 days or more past due, including loans in foreclosure): 0.93 percent, down from 1.23 percent in August 2022 and a high of 4.33 percent in August 2020.
• Foreclosure Inventory Rate (the share of mortgages in some stage of the foreclosure process): 0.33 percent, unchanged from August 2022.

“U.S. mortgage performance remained strong in August, supported by a robust job market and a healthy economy,” said Molly Boesel, principal economist at CoreLogic. “However, this thriving job market comes at a time when interest rates are quickly rising, which is keeping many potential homebuyers from being able to secure a mortgage.”