“Gen Z has seen some of the highest delinquency rates amongst generational groups in the post-pandemic period. However, this has been coming down.”
Dr. Rikard Bandebo, Chief Strategy Officer and Chief Economist at VantageScore, joined Yahoo! Finance on ‘Market Domination Overtime,’ discussing the overall US consumer credit landscape across income levels and generations.
“It does seem like Gen Z has been able to adapt to the more challenging income environment that they’re facing. They have also been impacted by student loans, and have reacted to those student loans by reducing spending in other areas.”
Additionally, Dr. Bandebo elaborated on the divergence of consumer experience in terms of income levels, noting that higher-income households have seen delinquencies stabilize and decrease.
On other income levels, Dr. Bandebo added, “Middle-income delinquencies have come down, which is a good sign. Lower-income delinquencies are staying persistently higher. Lower-income households don’t have as many assets to tap into when struggling with monthly payments.”
Dr. Bandebo concluded with a look to 2026:
“Overall, we are seeing that consumer credit health is pretty stable. We are expecting more households to struggle to make ends meet next year. As we look at delinquency rates, we are seeing that many are at or near the highest they’ve been since just after the financial crisis.”
VantageScore’s CreditGauge provides timely data insights and analysis. To learn more, visit our website: https://vantagescore.com/insights/creditgauge.
Watch the full interview here:
