US household debt falls $13B in Q2

US household debt fell $13 billion, or 0.1%, in the second quarter to $18.8 trillion, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

Despite the quarterly decline, household debt increased by $383 billion year-on-year and was $4.6 trillion higher than at the end of 2019, the bank's Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit showed.

Mortgage balances, the largest component of household debt, declined by $74 billion to $13.1 trillion. The New York Fed said the drop was mostly caused by a reporting gap related to a transfer between mortgage servicers.

Non-housing debt, meanwhile, increased by $48 billion, or 0.9%.

Auto loan balances rose by $28 billion to $1.71 trillion, while credit card balances increased by $21 billion to $1.26 trillion.

Student loan balances fell by $7 billion to $1.65 trillion.

Mortgage originations totaled $505 billion during the quarter, while new auto loans amounted to $211 billion.

The share of outstanding debt in some stage of delinquency declined by 0.1 percentage point to 4.7%.

The share of student loan balances at least 90 days past due, however, increased to 10.6% from 10.3% in the previous quarter.

About 137,000 consumers had a bankruptcy notation added to their credit reports, while 55,000 people had new foreclosures.