Overview
- Total household debt rose by $191 billion in Q4 2025 to $18.8 trillion, with mortgages at $13.2 trillion and credit card balances at a record $1.28 trillion.
- Overall distress worsened to 4.8% of loans in trouble, and 12.7% of credit card balances were 90+ days delinquent, the highest share since 2011.
- Mortgage performance remains modest by long‑run standards, yet the Q4 flow into serious delinquency reached about 1.4%, with a 2025 average near 1.3%.
- Delinquencies increased most in lower‑income zip codes and in places with weakening local conditions, including counties with larger unemployment jumps (about +0.6 percentage points in new mortgage delinquencies) and areas with falling home prices such as parts of Florida’s Gulf Coast.
- Student loans remain the most troubled segment, with 9.6% 90+ days delinquent and a 16.2% flow into serious delinquency in the fourth quarter.