VantageScore CreditGauge: Mortgages Help Drive Credit Balance Increases in January

(Image courtesy of VantageScore; Breakout image courtesy of Jessica Lewis/thepaintedsquare via pexels.com)

VantageScore, San Francisco, released its CreditGauge report for January, finding average overall credit account balances rose by more than $1,000 from December 2024.

That increase is the most significant month-over-month growth in nearly three years, and brought balances to a five-year high. The average overall credit balance stood at $105,700, up $1,049 from December and up $1,350 from January 2024. Mortgages largely drove that increase, VantageScore reported.

In January, the average mortgage balance rose $5,598 year-over-year and $1,533 month-over-month. The mortgage balance-to-loan ratio dipped to 80.2%, indicating steady loan repayments, the report noted.

Mortgage originations on a monthly basis declined for Gen Z, millennials and Gen X and were flat for the Silent Generation and Baby Boomers. However, mortgage originations increased across all generations year-over-year.

Looking at 13-month delinquency rate trends, results were mixed across products–auto loan credit delinquencies increased across all buckets year-over-year. But, year-over-year credit card credit delinquencies declined across all buckets. Mortgage credit delinquencies decreased in earlier stages (30-59 days past due) but increased in later stages (90-119 days past due.)

“The combination of rising mid-to-late-stage credit delinquencies and rising credit balances suggests a growing debt burden that some consumers are increasingly struggling to manage,” said Susan Fahy, Executive Vice President and Chief Digital Officer at VantageScore. “This is both a short- and long-term trend. Later-stage delinquencies are key because they are an indication that late payments will likely not go away anytime soon.”

The average VantageScore 4.0 credit score is at 702, nearly flat from December and up 0.9 point from January 2024.