NEW YORK—The Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s Center for Microeconomic Data today issued its Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit. The report shows total household debt increased by $18 billion, just a 0.1% increase, in Q1 2026, to $18.8 trillion. The report is based on data from the New York Fed’s nationally representative Consumer Credit Panel. It includes a one-page summary of key takeaways and their supporting data points.
The New York Fed also issued an accompanying Liberty Street Economics blog post examining which borrowers defaulted on their student loans and whether those defaults spilled over to their other forms of debt. Separately, the New York Fed also published a technical note on a change in the Report’s credit score measure.
“Aggregate household debt levels rose slightly, with modest increases in most debt types offsetting a seasonal decline in credit card balances,” said Daniel Mangrum, Research Economist at the New York Fed. “Delinquency transition rates were mostly steady, while student loan delinquencies are returning to pre-pandemic levels.”
Mortgage balances grew by $21 billion in the first quarter and totaled $13.19 trillion at the end of March. Home equity lines of credit (HELOC) balances rose by $12 billion totaling $446 billion, $129 billion above the low reached in Q1 2022. Credit card balances fell by $25 billion and stood at $1.25 trillion. Auto loan balances increased by $18 billion to $1.69 trillion, while student loan balances remained essentially flat, decreasing by $6 billion and standing at $1.66 trillion.
The pace of mortgage originations was largely steady with $530 billion newly originated in Q1 2026. There were $182 billion in new auto loans appearing on credit reports during this quarter. Aggregate limits on credit cards continued to rise, with a $60 billion uptick in the first quarter. HELOC limits rose by $14 billion, or 1.4%, continuing an expansion in HELOCs that began in 2022.
Aggregate delinquency showed little change in Q1 2026, with 4.8% of outstanding debt in some stage of delinquency. Transitions into early delinquency held steady for auto loans, but ticked down for credit cards, from 8.7% annually to 8.6%, and for mortgages from 3.9% to 3.8%. Transitions into serious delinquency were mostly unchanged for auto loans and credit cards but accelerated slightly for mortgages from 1.4% to 1.5%.
Student Loans
- The student loan transition rate into serious delinquency, measured as a four-quarter moving sum, declined from 16.2% in Q4 2025 to 10.9% this quarter, reflecting a slower pace of new student loan delinquencies in the first quarter relative to the previous year.
- The student loan delinquency rate increased to 10.3% of balances 90+ days delinquent, up from the 9.6% observed in Q4 2025.
- Approximately 2.6 million student loan borrowers who were more than 120 days past due had their loans transferred to the U.S Department of Education’s Default Resolution Group.
Household Debt and Credit Developments as of Q1 2026
| Category | Quarterly Change * (Billions $) | Annual Change** (Billions $) | Total As of Q1 2026 (Trillions $) |
| Mortgage Debt | (+) $21 | (+) $387 | $13.191 |
| Home Equity Line of Credit | (+) $12 | (+) $44 | $0.446 |
| Student Debt | (-) $6 | (+) $27 | $1.658 |
| Auto Debt | (+) $18 | (+) $43 | $1.685 |
| Credit Card Debt | (-) $25 | (+) $70 | $1.252 |
| Other | (-) $2 | (+) $20 | $0.562 |
| Total Debt | (+) $18 | (+) $591 | $18.794 |
*Change from Q4 2025 to Q1 2026
** Change from Q1 2025 to Q1 2026
Flow into Serious Delinquency (90 days or more delinquent)
| Category1 | Q1 2025 | Q1 2026 |
| Mortgage Debt | 1.22% | 1.48% |
| Home Equity Line of Credit | 0.88% | 1.15% |
| Student Loan Debt | 8.04% | 10.86% |
| Auto Loan Debt | 2.94% | 2.97% |
| Credit Card Debt | 7.04% | 7.10% |
| Other | 5.44% | 5.16% |
| ALL | 2.45% | 2.83% |
About the Report
The Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s Household Debt and Credit Report provides unique data and insight into the credit conditions and activity of U.S. consumers. Based on data from the New York Fed’s Consumer Credit Panel, a nationally representative sample drawn from anonymized Equifax credit data, the report provides a quarterly snapshot of household trends in borrowing and indebtedness, including data about mortgages, student loans, credit cards, auto loans, and delinquencies. The report aims to help community groups, small businesses, state and local governments, and the public to better understand, monitor, and respond to trends in borrowing and indebtedness at the household level. Sections of the report are presented as interactive graphs on the New York Fed’s Household Debt and Credit Report webpage and the full report is available for download.
