{"id":8079,"date":"2026-05-20T14:32:18","date_gmt":"2026-05-20T14:32:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=8079"},"modified":"2026-05-20T14:32:18","modified_gmt":"2026-05-20T14:32:18","slug":"past-due-consumer-debts-at-6-year-high-in-california-nationwide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=8079","title":{"rendered":"Past-due consumer debts at 6-year high in California, nationwide"},"content":{"rendered":"
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If you want to get worried about the economy, look at who isn\u2019t paying their bills.<\/p>\n

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My trusty spreadsheet\u2019s review of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York\u2019s first-quarter study of credit files found a growing inability to make timely debt payments.<\/p>\n

The data tracks debts \u2013 including mortgages, credit cards, auto and student loans \u2013 in 11 big states and the nation going back to 2003. These statistics only consider individuals with credit histories \u2014 roughly 90% of the population.<\/p>\n

To start 2026, this math shows 2.1% of California consumer debts were 90 days or more late. That\u2019s the highest since 2020\u2019s first quarter \u00a0\u2013 just as the pandemic was beginning to upend the economy.<\/p>\n

Now, this is still below the 3.5% average dating back to 2003, and the skipped-payment peak of 12.6% in 2009\u2019s fourth quarter amid the Great Recession.<\/p>\n

Still, it\u2019s an unnerving trendline. The good news, for California, is that Golden Staters are better than most Americans at paying their bills.\u00a0Nationwide, 3% of consumer debt was delinquent in the first quarter, the highest since 2020\u2019s first quarter.<\/p>\n

And just like California, this tardiness remains historically modest. It\u2019s less than the 3.7% average since 2003, and nowhere near the peak of 8.6% in 2010\u2019s first quarter.<\/p>\n

Also, ponder poor bill-paying habits within two California arch-rivals.<\/p>\n

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Texas had a 4.2% delinquency rate in the first quarter, the highest since 2014\u2019s second quarter. While 3.9% delinquency rate to start 2026 is off from the recent high of 4.13% in 2025\u2019s second quarter, it\u2019s the state\u2019s highest since 2019\u2019s second quarter.<\/p>\n

Early 2026\u2019s skipped bill payments reveal a financially stressed consumer with monetary headaches that are, for now, problematic but manageable.<\/p>\n

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Making the mortgage<\/h4>\n

Think about one large subset of this problem: tardy mortgage payments.<\/p>\n

Just 0.7% of California mortgage balances are late. Yes, that\u2019s the highest since 2020\u2019s first quarter, but it\u2019s a delinquency pace that\u2019s off from the 2.7% average of the last 23 years and the peak of 13.2% in 2009\u2019s fourth quarter.<\/p>\n

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Nationwide, 1.1% of home loans are late, the highest since 2018\u2019s second quarter, but below the 2.6% long-term norm and the 2010 first-quarter peak of 8.9%.<\/p>\n

In Texas, mortgage delinquencies at 1.5% at the start of 2026 were the highest since 2015\u2019s first quarter. Florida\u2019s 1.6% first-quarter delinquency rate was just below the 1.7% recent high in 2025\u2019s third quarter, which was the highest since 2018\u2019s fourth quarter.<\/p>\n

Less borrowing<\/h4>\n

Another sign of consumer financial stress is a slowdown in loan usage.<\/p>\n

California\u2019s $87,710 in consumer debt per capita in the first quarter was up just 0.1% over the year. That is a far slower pace of new debts compared with the 3% six-year growth rate.<\/p>\n

Similar cooling was seen nationwide. U.S. per capita debts of $63,545 were up 2% in a year vs. a 4% six-year growth rate.<\/p>\n

Texans have $60,710 debts per capita, up 3% in a year vs. a 5% six-year growth rate. And Floridians owe $62,500 per capita, up 2% over the past year, compared with a 5% growth rate over the past six years.<\/p>\n

Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at jlansner@scng.com<\/em><\/p>\n

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