by Calculated Risk on 2/18/2014 02:14:00 PM

This morning, the NY Fed released their Q4 Household Debt and Credit Report. The report showed that total household debt is 9.1% below the Q3 2008 peak. Mortgage debt is down 13.4% from the peak, and Home Equity revolving debt is down 25.9%. This is nominal dollars.

If we look at real dollars (inflation adjusted using CPI from the BLS), then total debt is down 16.9% since 2008, mortgage debt down 20.7%, home equity debt down 32.6%, auto debt down 12.2%, and credit card debt down 27.9%. Only student debt is at a new high (up 77% since Q3 2008 in nominal terms).

The following graph (not from the NY Fed) shows household debt in real terms.

Click on graph for larger image.

This household deleveraging was a key reason the recovery was slow, and now it appears the deleveraging is over.

This is a significant decline in total household debt, especially for mortgage, home equity, and credit card debt (student debt has increased).