The Foreclosure Report

Credit Card Delinquencies Up

Reuters has this report. "The percentage of credit card payments that were past due shot up to a record high in the second quarter as surging gasoline prices strained budgets and made it difficult for some people to pay their bills."

"TThe seasonally adjusted percentage of credit card accounts 30 or more days past due rose in the April-to-June quarter to 4.81 percent. That followed a delinquency rate of 4.76 percent in the first quarter and was the highest since the association began collecting this information in 1973."

"'The rise in gas prices is really stretching budgets to the breaking point for some people,' economist Jim Chessen said in an interview. 'Gas prices are taking huge chunks out of wallets, leaving some individuals with little left to meet their financial obligations.'"

"The survey also showed that the delinquency rate on a composite of other types of consumers loans, including auto loans and home equity loans, climbed to 2.22 percent in the second quarter, up from 2.03 percent in the first quarter."

posted by Ben Jones @ 6:17 AM