Mortgage Delinquencies Dip, But Trouble Builds Beneath The Surface
By CU Today Staff —
WASHINGTON—The mortgage delinquency rate declined slightly during the second quarter, but delinquencies and foreclosures remained substantially higher than a year earlier, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s National Delinquency Survey.
The seasonally adjusted delinquency rate for mortgages on one-to-four-unit residential properties fell seven basis points from the first quarter to 4.37% of all loans outstanding. The rate was 44 basis points higher than a year earlier, while the percentage of loans in foreclosure increased three basis points during the quarter to 0.67%.
“Mortgage delinquencies decreased slightly across all loan types in the second quarter of 2026. Nonetheless, the broader trend is that both delinquencies and foreclosures have increased over the past year,” said Marina Walsh, CMB, MBA’s vice president of industry analysis. “The mortgage delinquency rate rose 44 basis points and the foreclosure inventory rate increased by almost 20 basis points from last year’s second quarter.
“Some loans are continuing to move to later stages of delinquency," Added Walsh. "The seriously delinquent rate – the non-seasonally adjusted percentage of loans that are 90 days or more past due or in the process of foreclosure – increased for the fourth consecutive quarter. Furthermore, FHA serious delinquencies are becoming pronounced, increasing more than 225 basis points from the previous year.”
Walsh said recent signs of labor-market weakness, rising delinquencies on student loans, credit cards and auto loans, stretched housing affordability and slower home equity accumulation could be indications of growing homeowner distress.
Originally reported by CU Today.