CoreLogic: Homeowners Well Positioned To Weather Shallow Recession

Measuring early-stage delinquency rates is important for analyzing the health of the mortgage market. CoreLogic’s latest Loan Performance Insights finds that, despite tough economic conditions for many Americans, the nation’s overall delinquency rate is down annually near historic lows.

As of November 2022, 2.9 percent of mortgages were delinquent by at least 30 days or more including those in foreclosure. This represents a 0.7 percentage point decrease in the overall delinquency rate compared with November 2021. While national mortgage delinquencies declined for the 20th straight month on an annual basis, 18 U.S. metro areas saw at least slight increases in late borrower payments, up from six in October and one in September.

“Most homeowners are well positioned to weather a shallow recession,” said Molly Boesel, Principal Economist for CoreLogic. “More than a decade of home price increases has given homeowners record amounts of equity, which protects them from foreclosure should they fall behind on their mortgage payments.”

CoreLogic’s latest Home Equity Report shows that U.S. homeowners with a mortgage saw their equity increase by 15.8 percent year over year in the third quarter of 2022, for an average gain of $34,300 per borrower.