Mortgage delinquencies up for first time since 2009

According to research from the Fair Isaac Corporation, missed mortgage payments can affect one's credit score, Smart Credit reports. While the company only produced results for FICO 680, 720 and 780 consumer groups, it can be inferred that a mortgage delinquency would negatively affect a person's TransUnion credit report as well. Researchers found that the better a person's score, the further it tended to fall and the longer it took to recover. Specifically, it takes the average 680 score nine months to recover from a payment that was 30 days late. A 720 typically won't recover for 2.5 years and a 780 will take three years to be restored. Mortgage delinquency in the U.S. had not been an issue for Americans since 2009. However, TransUnion recently reported that the national mortgage delinquency rate increased last month by 5.88 percent. "Until this quarter, we had seen six straight quarters where progressively more people were able to make their mortgage payments on time," said Tim Martin, group vice president of U.S. Housing in TransUnion’s financial services business unit. However, Martin points out that during the third quarter, barriers to payment arose, such as the U.S. credit rating downgrades, stock price declines, European debt concerns, unwavering unemployment, increased downward pressure on home values and low consumer confidence.