The Federal Reserve's triennial Survey of Consumer Finances, released Friday, shows that families were more likely to be behind on their financial obligations than at any point since the 2010 survey, which captured the tail end of the Great Recession.
The portion of families behind on loan payments rose by roughly 67%, from about 12% in the previous survey to nearly 20%. Those behind by two months or more also increased sharply, moving from 5% to more than 8%. The share of families with payment-to-income ratios exceeding 40% jumped to 8.6%, up from 6.5% in 2022 and the highest since 2013.
While the report covers data through 2025, concerns persist. A separate New York Fed survey this week showed households reported their financial situations had worsened from a year ago and expected further weakness ahead.
Wealth disparities narrowed somewhat. The report noted that "families in the lower ends of the income and net worth distributions saw modest increases in median and mean income, while families in the upper ends saw declines," indicating that income inequality decreased slightly. However, income gains were concentrated among those aged 75 or older, while families aged 35 to 44 saw a 25% drop in income, attributed to declines in capital gains.
Median real family income increased 7% overall, but average income fell 6%. The exceptions were Black non-Hispanic families, Asian families, and families near the top of income and net worth distributions, for whom both median and mean income fell.
Overall inflation-adjusted average net worth rose 7% to $1.24 million, while median net worth edged up just 2% to $215,900, reflecting gains concentrated at the higher end. The report described net worth growth as "much slower" than in the prior survey covering 2019-2022.
Those with a college degree had 1.9 times the median income of those with only some college education, underscoring persistent disparities.