U.S. household debt $1 trillion higher than at peak of financial crisis

Here are two frightening statistics when it comes to state of Americans’ finances: household debts are surging and delinquency rates are soaring.

According to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York (FRBNY)’s quarterly report on household debt and credit, total household debt surged to $13.67 trillion, which is $1 trillion higher than at the peak of the 2008 financial crisis.

This is the 19th consecutive quarter that debt has increased.

The same report found that new mortgage and auto loan balances declined from the fourth quarter of 2018, showing that lenders are less willing to extend new credit for homeowners and motorists.

In a separate Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) report, the number of U.S. homeowners who fell behind on their mortgage payments tumbled in the first quarter of 2019 from an 18-year low.

During the January-to-March period, the delinquency rate rose to 4.42 percent.

Should the U.S. central bank return to normalizing interest rates, then you can expect these figures to soar. Remember, the household debt levels do not include debt servicing payments, which climb more than $1 billion every time the Fed pulls the trigger on a rate hike.

Make America Indebted Again!