A new report based on credit bureau data forecasts that rising mortgage delinquency should ease next year. States identified as having the worst delinquency were the same states where foreclosures rates are highest.
Mortgage delinquency of at least 60 days reached 2.99 percent nationally during the fourth quarter, a 17 percent increase from the third quarter, according to a new report from TransUnion. Delinquency is projected to rise to 4.00 percent by the end of this year.
“This is primarily due to the continued deterioration in economic activity throughout the country combined with the consequences of the mortgage crisis,” the Chicago-based company said. “However, in 2009 the rise in mortgage delinquency rates is expected to taper off as economic conditions improve and home prices begin to stabilize.”
TransUnion said it based its findings on a database of 27 million anonymous consumer records randomly sampled every quarter from its national consumer credit database.
Nevada had a 4.68 percent delinquency rate, higher than any state. The biggest increases in delinquency were in Florida, which was 34 percent higher; California, which climbed 33 percent; and Arizona, up 32 percent.
TransUnion’s findings mirror the findings of a report released today by ReatlyTrac that indicated the states with the highest foreclosure rates during the first quarter were Nevada, California, Arizona and Florida.
North Dakota had lowest level of late pays, at 1.13 percent, while Alaska had the biggest decrease, at a 21 percent decline.
Average mortgage debt per U.S. borrower was $191,370 during the fourth quarter, down 3.9 percent from the third quarter.
The average mortgage loan in California was $361,387 — higher than any other state. Washington, D.C., was next, at $351,690, then Hawaii, with an average loan of $302,373. At $93,891, West Virginia had the lowest average mortgage debt.
“Mortgage debt … is experiencing a downward slide not seen since 2005,” TransUnion Senior Consultant Keith Carson said in the statement.
Hawaii saw an 0.3 percent increase in average mortgage debt from the fourth quarter, the highest of any state. Georgia saw the biggest decline, at 6.4 percent.
