Auto loan delinquencies reach record share as credit card strain nears 2010 peak

The short version

• Seriously delinquent auto loan balances hit a record share this year, per New York Fed data.[CBS News]
• Nearly 13% of credit card balances are seriously past due, close to 2010 peak levels.[CBS News]
• Americans over 70 show the highest auto loan delinquency share since 2000 tracking began, and card delinquency is highest since 2011.[CBS News]
• Debt.com and CBS News poll findings reflect survey responses, not measured loan performance.[CBS News]

Key facts

• Seriously delinquent auto loan balances hit a record share this year, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.[CBS News]
• Nearly 13% of credit card balances are seriously past due, close to their 2010 peak.[CBS News]
• The share of households behind on mortgages reached a six-year high, though still far below Great Recession peaks.[CBS News]
• Student loan delinquencies rose over the past year, linked to the end of pandemic-era protections and a Biden administration repayment plan.[CBS News]
• Almost 9% of U.S. households spent more than 40% of their income on debt repayment in 2025, the highest level since 2010, per the Federal Reserve's Survey of Consumer Finances.[CBS News]
• Nearly 20% of households were late on a debt payment in 2025, up from about 12% in 2022.[CBS News]
• Americans over 70 have auto loan delinquency at its highest level since the New York Fed began tracking it in 2000, and credit card delinquency at its highest since 2011.[CBS News]
• A March Debt.com survey found more than half of Americans relied on credit cards for groceries, rent and utilities, and almost six in 10 said inflation caused a bigger card balance.[CBS News]

Sources

Outlet counts describe coverage, not independent confirmation. Reports may share a wire service or original source.

• Squeezed by inflation, more Americans are falling behind on their debtsCBS News - US