Credit Card, Mortgage Delinquencies to Decline
Mortgage and credit card delinquencies are expected to continue their fall throughout next year, but at a much slower rate than in the past two years, according to data from credit reporting agency TransUnion. TransUnion expects by the end of next year 90-day delinquencies on credit cards issued by banks — mostly those bearing MasterCard and Visa logos — to drop to 1.04%, compared to 1.07% projected for this year. The expected 2.8% drop is far less than the 11% and 12% declines, respectively, recorded for the past two years.
TransUnion also expects that mortgages loans that are 60 or more days past due will decline to 6.39% at the end of 2010 from a projected 6.56% this month, representing a “Dramatic shift from the 43% to 54% year-over-year increases we have seen the last three years,” according to Ezra Becker, director of consulting and strategy at TransUnion’s financial-services group.
While TransUnion projects that 22 states will see double-digit decreases in mortgage delinquencies, five are seen reporting increases, with hard-hit Florida leading the way with a 17% rise and putting its delinquency rate at the top nationally. Arizona, another state that has seen one of the biggest declines from earlier this decade, is forecast to have its delinquency rate rise another 6.3%.
