The Green Mountain State is awash in the red ink of mortgage delinquency, according to a new report from WalletHub.
In its newly published “States Where Mortgage Delinquency Is Increasing the Most,” WalletHub detailed where home loans have become least affordable from the fourth quarter of 2023 to the first quarter of this year. Among the 50 states, Vermont experienced the greatest acceleration of mortgage delinquencies.
“Vermont has seen mortgage delinquency increase the most recently, with nearly 24% more mortgages in the state delinquent in Q1 2024 than in Q4 2023,” said Cassandra Happe, a WalletHub analyst. “In total, Vermonters are delinquent on 7.1% of their mortgages, which is the 14th-highest overall delinquency rate.”
Nebraska had the second-highest increase in mortgage delinquency during the measured period, with Cornhuskers falling behind on payments for nearly 23% more mortgages. WalletHub’s report theorized that “Nebraska has a relatively weak state economy and some of the highest tax rates in the country, so those factors may contribute to Nebraska residents having trouble making their mortgage payments.”
The nation’s smallest state had an outsized number of homeowners behind on their loan payments – Rhode Island’s mortgage delinquency rate increased by nearly 20% between over the measured period. WalletHub’s report noted that “Rhode Island has a very low share of people who have been allowed to delay payments on their debts due to financial difficulty. This means that when many people in Rhode Island are late on their mortgage payments, their score will continually decrease, without any special provisions from their bank.”
Rounding out the top 10 states for mortgage delinquency were Utah, Idaho, North Carolina, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana and Hawaii. Ironically, the state with the lowest mortgage delinquency level was New Hampshire, the eastern neighbor of top ranked Vermont.
Photo: Ken Lund / Flickr Creative Commons
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