New Serious Delinquency Rate, Borrowers Age 18 to 29
Share of the age group's debt newly 90 or more days late, four quarters to each quarter
Where the New Serious Delinquency Rate, Borrowers Age 18 to 29 stands now
The New Serious Delinquency Rate, Borrowers Age 18 to 29 was 4.0% in the second quarter of 2026. Since 2000 it has ranged from 1.0% in the second quarter of 2021 to 9.5% in the second quarter of 2009.
Behind on payments? Your Rights with Debt Collectors
How the New Serious Delinquency Rate, Borrowers Age 18 to 29 has moved since 2000
New Serious Delinquency Rate, Borrowers Age 18 to 29: down since 2025
Percent of the age group's balances that went 90 or more days late over the previous four quarters, Federal Reserve Bank of New York Consumer Credit Panel / Equifax: 4.0% in the second quarter of 2026, down from 4.6% a year earlier. Quarterly, 2000–2026.
What the New Serious Delinquency Rate, Borrowers Age 18 to 29 measures
Measurement basis: Of all the debt balances held by borrowers age 18 to 29, the share that crossed into 90 or more days late during the previous four quarters, every loan type together. The Federal Reserve Bank of New York publishes it in the Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit as 'Transition into Serious Delinquency (90+) by Age' (Page 24 Data), as a four-quarter moving sum of the quarterly transition rate, so one reading covers a year. The denominator is the group's balances that were current or less than 90 days late at the start. Age comes from the New York Fed Consumer Credit Panel, a 5 percent sample of Equifax credit files; a borrower with no birth year on file is left out. Each reading is dated to the last day of its quarter, and the New York Fed revises the whole history each quarter.
A higher rate is worse for households.
In our research, changes in this measure have tended to show up in New Serious Delinquency Rate, Borrowers Age 70 and Over about 2 quarters later. How we tested this
New Serious Delinquency Rate, Borrowers Age 18 to 29 by quarter, 2000 to 2026
| Quarter | Rate (%) | Change from a year earlier (percentage points) |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 2026 | 4.0 | −0.6 |
| Q1 2026 | 4.7 | +1.4 |
| Q4 2025 | 5.3 | +3.0 |
| Q3 2025 | 5.0 | +2.6 |
| Q2 2025 | 4.6 | +2.3 |
| Q1 2025 | 3.3 | +0.9 |
| Q4 2024 | 2.3 | 0.0 |
| Q3 2024 | 2.4 | +0.3 |
| Q2 2024 | 2.3 | +0.4 |
| Q1 2024 | 2.4 | +0.5 |
| Q4 2023 | 2.3 | +0.6 |
| Q3 2023 | 2.1 | +0.6 |
| Q2 2023 | 1.9 | +0.6 |
| Q1 2023 | 1.9 | +0.8 |
| Q4 2022 | 1.7 | +0.7 |
| Q3 2022 | 1.5 | +0.5 |
| Q2 2022 | 1.3 | +0.3 |
| Q1 2022 | 1.1 | 0.0 |
| Q4 2021 | 1.0 | −0.6 |
| Q3 2021 | 1.0 | −1.5 |
| Q2 2021 | 1.0 | −2.3 |
| Q1 2021 | 1.1 | −3.0 |
| Q4 2020 | 1.6 | −2.7 |
| Q3 2020 | 2.5 | −1.7 |
| Q2 2020 | 3.3 | −1.1 |
| Q1 2020 | 4.1 | −0.3 |
| Q4 2019 | 4.3 | 0.0 |
| Q3 2019 | 4.2 | −0.2 |
| Q2 2019 | 4.4 | 0.0 |
| Q1 2019 | 4.4 | −0.2 |
| Q4 2018 | 4.3 | −0.3 |
| Q3 2018 | 4.4 | −0.5 |
| Q2 2018 | 4.4 | −0.5 |
| Q1 2018 | 4.6 | −0.4 |
| Q4 2017 | 4.6 | −0.3 |
| Q3 2017 | 4.9 | 0.0 |
| Q2 2017 | 4.9 | −0.1 |
| Q1 2017 | 5.0 | +0.1 |
| Q4 2016 | 4.9 | −0.1 |
| Q3 2016 | 4.9 | 0.0 |
| Q2 2016 | 5.0 | +0.2 |
| Q1 2016 | 4.9 | +0.1 |
| Q4 2015 | 5.0 | +0.2 |
| Q3 2015 | 4.9 | 0.0 |
| Q2 2015 | 4.8 | −0.1 |
| Q1 2015 | 4.8 | 0.0 |
| Q4 2014 | 4.8 | 0.0 |
| Q3 2014 | 4.9 | −0.1 |
| Q2 2014 | 4.9 | −0.3 |
| Q1 2014 | 4.8 | −0.7 |
| Q4 2013 | 4.8 | −0.7 |
| Q3 2013 | 5.0 | −0.4 |
| Q2 2013 | 5.2 | +0.1 |
| Q1 2013 | 5.5 | +0.6 |
| Q4 2012 | 5.5 | +0.6 |
| Q3 2012 | 5.4 | +0.5 |
| Q2 2012 | 5.1 | 0.0 |
| Q1 2012 | 4.9 | −0.3 |
| Q4 2011 | 4.9 | −0.8 |
| Q3 2011 | 4.9 | −1.6 |
| Q2 2011 | 5.1 | −1.9 |
| Q1 2011 | 5.2 | −2.6 |
| Q4 2010 | 5.7 | −2.8 |
| Q3 2010 | 6.5 | −2.4 |
| Q2 2010 | 7.0 | −2.5 |
| Q1 2010 | 7.8 | −1.3 |
| Q4 2009 | 8.5 | −0.1 |
| Q3 2009 | 8.9 | +0.6 |
| Q2 2009 | 9.5 | +2.2 |
| Q1 2009 | 9.1 | +2.1 |
| Q4 2008 | 8.6 | +2.1 |
| Q3 2008 | 8.3 | +2.7 |
| Q2 2008 | 7.3 | +1.9 |
| Q1 2008 | 7.0 | +2.2 |
| Q4 2007 | 6.5 | +2.1 |
| Q3 2007 | 5.6 | +1.5 |
| Q2 2007 | 5.4 | +1.6 |
| Q1 2007 | 4.8 | +1.2 |
| Q4 2006 | 4.4 | +0.7 |
| Q3 2006 | 4.1 | +0.3 |
| Q2 2006 | 3.8 | 0.0 |
| Q1 2006 | 3.6 | −0.3 |
| Q4 2005 | 3.7 | 0.0 |
| Q3 2005 | 3.8 | 0.0 |
| Q2 2005 | 3.8 | −0.1 |
| Q1 2005 | 3.9 | 0.0 |
| Q4 2004 | 3.7 | −0.8 |
| Q3 2004 | 3.8 | −1.1 |
| Q2 2004 | 3.9 | −1.4 |
| Q1 2004 | 3.9 | −1.7 |
| Q4 2003 | 4.5 | −1.0 |
| Q3 2003 | 4.9 | −0.8 |
| Q2 2003 | 5.3 | −0.5 |
| Q1 2003 | 5.6 | −0.2 |
| Q4 2002 | 5.5 | −0.2 |
| Q3 2002 | 5.7 | +0.3 |
| Q2 2002 | 5.8 | +0.9 |
| Q1 2002 | 5.8 | +0.9 |
| Q4 2001 | 5.7 | +1.1 |
| Q3 2001 | 5.4 | +1.0 |
| Q2 2001 | 4.9 | +0.3 |
| Q1 2001 | 4.9 | +0.7 |
| Q4 2000 | 4.6 | — |
| Q3 2000 | 4.4 | — |
| Q2 2000 | 4.6 | — |
| Q1 2000 | 4.2 | — |
Quarterly · New York Fed Consumer Credit Panel / Equifax
Counties with the highest delinquency scores
There's no county figure for this measure, so this list uses the delinquency part of our County Distress Index.
| Rank | County | Score (0–100) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Coahoma County, MS | 99.5 |
| 2 | Washington County, MS | 99.3 |
| 3 | Leflore County, MS | 99.3 |
| 4 | Williamsburg County, SC | 99.2 |
| 5 | Dillon County, SC | 98.9 |
| 6 | Clayton County, GA | 98.9 |
| 7 | Yazoo County, MS | 98.6 |
| 8 | Sunflower County, MS | 98.5 |
| 9 | Marlboro County, SC | 98.4 |
| 10 | Dallas County, AL | 98.3 |
Questions about new serious delinquency for borrowers aged 18 to 29
What counts as seriously late for a borrower under 30?
A balance that was being paid, or was less than three months behind, and then reached 90 days past due within the year. The New York Fed adds up those balances over four quarters and divides by everything the age group owed.
Why is the rate for the youngest borrowers so much higher than for older ones?
Thin credit files, entry-level pay and student loans. A first card or a first car loan has no history behind it, one lost paycheck lands on the payment at once, and federal student loans that were paused from 2020 to 2023 went back onto credit reports as late in 2025.
Is this the share of young people who are behind?
No. It is the share of their debt, in dollars, so a large student loan counts for more than a small card balance. The number of people behind is a different measure.
Which loans are included?
Every kind the New York Fed tracks: mortgages, home equity lines, car loans, credit cards, student loans and other consumer debt, pooled into one figure for the age group.
Sources and method for the New Serious Delinquency Rate, Borrowers Age 18 to 29
- New York Fed Consumer Credit Panel / Equifax Measurement basis: Of all the debt balances held by borrowers age 18 to 29, the share that crossed into 90 or more days late during the previous four quarters, every loan type together. The Federal Reserve Bank of New York publishes it in the Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit as 'Transition into Serious Delinquency (90+) by Age' (Page 24 Data), as a four-quarter moving sum of the quarterly transition rate, so one reading covers a year. The denominator is the group's balances that were current or less than 90 days late at the start. Age comes from the New York Fed Consumer Credit Panel, a 5 percent sample of Equifax credit files; a borrower with no birth year on file is left out. Each reading is dated to the last day of its quarter, and the New York Fed revises the whole history each quarter. We use the quarterly figures as published, from the first quarter of 2000 through the second quarter of 2026, with no adjustment of our own. Federal Reserve Bank of New York doesn’t adjust this rate for the season, so compare a quarter with the same quarter a year earlier. Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s report
We write with assistance from AI tools. Figures come from the data and sources named on this page.