The Federal Reserve Bank of New York's Center for Microeconomic Data has released its Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit, revealing a $167 billion increase in total household debt for the first quarter of 2025. This brings the total to $18.20 trillion. The report draws from data provided by the New York Fed’s Consumer Credit Panel.

A related blog post from Liberty Street Economics delves into student loan delinquency, focusing on borrowers who were past due in the first quarter and what this means for their access to other credit forms.

Daniel Mangrum, Research Economist at the New York Fed, commented on trends within different types of loans: “Transition rates into serious delinquency have leveled off for credit card and auto loans over the past year.” However, he noted a significant rise in seriously delinquent student loan borrowers due to new reports of past-due loans.

Credit card balances decreased by $29 billion to $1.18 trillion by March 2025. Auto loan balances also fell by $13 billion, totaling $1.64 trillion—marking only the second consecutive quarterly drop since 2011. Mortgage balances increased by $199 billion to reach $12.80 trillion, while HELOC balances rose by $6 billion to stand at $402 billion, marking twelve straight quarters of growth. Student loan balances saw an increase of $16 billion, reaching a total of $1.63 trillion.

The report indicates that mortgage originations slightly increased with newly originated mortgages amounting to $426 billion in Q1 2025. Aggregate limits on credit card accounts grew moderately by 1.5%, or $77 billion.

Overall delinquency rates have risen compared to previous quarters; currently, 4.3% of outstanding debt is in some stage of delinquency. While most debt types maintained steady transition rates into early delinquency, student loans experienced a sharp increase as previously unreported missed payments began appearing on credit reports following a five-year pause during the pandemic.

Outstanding student loan debt now stands at approximately $1.63 trillion with 7.74% reported as being more than 90 days delinquent in Q1 2025—a stark contrast from less than 1% reported in Q4 2024.

The Federal Reserve Bank's report offers valuable insights into U.S consumer credit conditions and activity through data sourced from anonymized Equifax credit information within its Consumer Credit Panel.