Key Notes
- Reported payment difficulties rose sharply between the 2022 and 2025 Federal Reserve surveys.
- Household wealth increased while more families faced heavy repayment obligations relative to income.
- September consumer expectations were mixed as financial outlooks worsened but anticipated missed payments declined.
Missed loan payments among U.S. families reached their highest level since 2010 in the Federal Reserve’s latest Survey of Consumer Finances, exposing a widening gap between household wealth and the money available to meet monthly bills.
The share reporting late payments rose to 19.6% in the 2025 survey from 12.2% in 2022. Those reporting payments at least two months overdue increased to 8.2% from 4.9%, according to the Fed’s report.
Released on October 9, the triennial findings describe an earlier period rather than today’s default rate. They show how financial strain can build even when headline measures of income and wealth improve.
Debt Payments Put More Pressure on Income
The Fed’s accompanying release showed that 8.6% of families devoted more than 40% of their income to debt payments, up from 6.5% in 2022. Meanwhile, the proportion carrying any debt remained broadly unchanged at 77%.
That combination puts the affordability of repayments at the center of the story. A stable share of families borrowing does not mean their existing obligations take the same effort to service. Larger required payments can leave less room for food, utilities, transport and unexpected expenses.
The delinquency question asks families holding debt at the interview whether they had fallen behind during the preceding year. It captures an experience of payment difficulty, rather than measuring the value of loans in default or predicting bank losses.
Rising Wealth Does Not Always Pay the Bills
Inflation-adjusted median family net worth increased 2% to $215,900, while average net worth rose 7% to $1.24 million. The distinction reflects the different information provided by the midpoint of the distribution and an average influenced by very wealthy families.
The Fed also reported real median family income of $82,200, up 7%, although average income fell 6% to $145,200. Income in this survey is measured for the calendar year before the interview, so those figures compare 2024 with 2021.
For an individual household, wealth and spending power are different tests of financial security. A more valuable home can improve a balance sheet without adding cash to a checking account. Selling an asset or borrowing against it also involves decisions that a net-worth total cannot capture.
The national figures therefore leave an important question open: how much readily available money a family has after essential costs and scheduled repayments. An improvement in aggregate wealth cannot answer that question for every borrower.
More Recent Expectations Send a Mixed Signal
The New York Fed’s September survey, released October 7, provides a more recent view. Larger shares of respondents said their finances had worsened over the past year and expected them to deteriorate over the next year.
Median expected household spending growth reached 5.5%, compared with expected income growth of 3.1%. One-year inflation expectations increased to 3.9%, their highest reading since May 2023.
Yet the average perceived probability of missing a minimum debt payment over the following three months fell one percentage point to 12.2%. Labor-market expectations mostly improved, even as respondents viewed access to credit less favorably.
These are expectations from a different survey, with different questions and time horizons. They do not establish that actual delinquencies have improved since 2025, but they prevent a simple reading that every measure of household stress is worsening simultaneously.
Emergency Expenses Expose Limited Financial Buffers
A separate Fed household survey, published in May, found that 16% of adults had not paid all their bills in the preceding month. Sixty-three percent could cover a hypothetical $400 emergency using cash, savings or a credit card paid off at the next statement.
It also found that 59% had faced a major unexpected expense during the preceding year. These measures cover adults and broader household expenses; they should not be added to the loan-payment percentages from the Survey of Consumer Finances.
Discretionary spending can complicate the calculation. As we previously reported, switching to a cheaper hobby only improves the overall budget when it replaces another cost rather than becoming an additional commitment.
Early Contact Can Help Borrowers Assess Their Options
For people struggling with credit-card payments, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau recommends contacting the card company promptly. Borrowers should explain why they cannot make the minimum, what they can afford and how long they need an adjusted payment arrangement.
The agency also suggests considering credit counseling and checking the services and fees before enrolling. It warns against debt-relief businesses that guarantee debts will disappear or instruct customers to stop communicating with lenders.
The immediate personal-finance issue is whether required payments fit available income, including irregular bills. The Fed’s new historical findings make that question more pressing, while newer surveys will help establish whether payment difficulties are spreading or easing.
