U.S. Mortgage Distress Index
Where GSE mortgage stress is building — quarterly, state-by-state.
NATIONAL SUMMARY
Where the composite sits today
Average worsened 100 bps quarter over quarter.
DISTRESS BY STATE
Distress by state
TOP 10 RANKING
Top 10 most distressed states
- #1Louisiana30.0elevated distress
- #2West Virginia29.1moderate distress
- #3District of Columbia28.8moderate distress
- #4Mississippi25.6moderate distress
- #5Alabama18.4moderate distress
- #6Maryland17.5low distress
- #7Texas17.5low distress
- #8Illinois17.5low distress
- #9Oklahoma17.3low distress
- #10Alaska17.1low distress
STATE COMPARISON
All 51 states ranked
Sort by any column. Scores are composites out of 100 — higher means more GSE-loan stress.
| Rank ▲ | State | Distress score | Band | QoQ (bps) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Louisiana | 30.0 | elevated distress | -42 bps |
| #2 | West Virginia | 29.1 | moderate distress | +183 bps |
| #3 | District of Columbia | 28.8 | moderate distress | +766 bps |
| #4 | Mississippi | 25.6 | moderate distress | +150 bps |
| #5 | Alabama | 18.4 | moderate distress | +135 bps |
| #6 | Maryland | 17.5 | low distress | +471 bps |
| #7 | Texas | 17.5 | low distress | +224 bps |
| #8 | Illinois | 17.5 | low distress | -2 bps |
| #9 | Oklahoma | 17.3 | low distress | +110 bps |
| #10 | Alaska | 17.1 | low distress | +106 bps |
| #11 | New Mexico | 16.9 | low distress | +51 bps |
| #12 | Florida | 16.9 | low distress | +138 bps |
| #13 | New York | 16.8 | low distress | +23 bps |
| #14 | Arkansas | 16.5 | low distress | +55 bps |
| #15 | Hawaii | 16.3 | low distress | +210 bps |
| #16 | Minnesota | 16.3 | low distress | +137 bps |
| #17 | Maine | 15.6 | low distress | +156 bps |
| #18 | Michigan | 15.1 | low distress | +92 bps |
| #19 | Iowa | 15.0 | low distress | +89 bps |
| #20 | Vermont | 14.8 | low distress | -294 bps |
| #21 | Wyoming | 14.8 | low distress | -88 bps |
| #22 | North Dakota | 14.7 | low distress | -44 bps |
| #23 | Kansas | 14.6 | low distress | +93 bps |
| #24 | Georgia | 14.0 | low distress | +215 bps |
| #25 | Ohio | 13.4 | low distress | +11 bps |
| #26 | Pennsylvania | 13.2 | low distress | +33 bps |
| #27 | Nevada | 12.7 | low distress | +111 bps |
| #28 | Kentucky | 12.3 | low distress | -29 bps |
| #29 | Missouri | 12.3 | low distress | +111 bps |
| #30 | Indiana | 11.9 | low distress | +17 bps |
| #31 | Oregon | 11.2 | low distress | +75 bps |
| #32 | Connecticut | 11.1 | low distress | -17 bps |
| #33 | South Dakota | 10.8 | low distress | +175 bps |
| #34 | South Carolina | 10.4 | low distress | +71 bps |
| #35 | Arizona | 10.2 | low distress | +146 bps |
| #36 | Colorado | 10.1 | low distress | +116 bps |
| #37 | New Jersey | 10.0 | low distress | +3 bps |
| #38 | North Carolina | 9.9 | low distress | +82 bps |
| #39 | Nebraska | 9.8 | low distress | +56 bps |
| #40 | Virginia | 9.6 | low distress | +193 bps |
| #41 | Delaware | 9.6 | low distress | +78 bps |
| #42 | California | 9.5 | low distress | +108 bps |
| #43 | Tennessee | 9.5 | low distress | +125 bps |
| #44 | Washington | 9.1 | low distress | +161 bps |
| #45 | Rhode Island | 8.2 | low distress | +23 bps |
| #46 | Massachusetts | 8.2 | low distress | +57 bps |
| #47 | Idaho | 8.1 | low distress | +106 bps |
| #48 | Utah | 8.0 | low distress | +149 bps |
| #49 | Montana | 7.9 | low distress | +53 bps |
| #50 | Wisconsin | 7.3 | low distress | +27 bps |
| #51 | New Hampshire | 6.4 | low distress | +125 bps |
METHODOLOGY
How this index is built
Composite index built from federal GSE loan data covering Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac single-family loans. Weighted 40% serious delinquency, 20% entrenched stress, 20% forbearance share, 20% REO inventory. Useful for spotting markets where distressed inventory is building before price effects show up.
- Source
- FHFA Foreclosure Prevention and Refinance Report · 2025Q4
- Published
- 2026-02-13
- Refresh cadence
- Quarterly, ~6–8 weeks after quarter close
- Coverage
- 51 states + DC. Puerto Rico and territories excluded (no FPRR coverage).
CITE THIS DATA
Cite this data
Journalists, researchers, and analysts — copy this reference into your story or paper.
REI Prime (2025Q4). PRIME Distress Index. https://reiprime.com/markets/distress-index?utm_source=citation&utm_medium=referral
Foreclosure is the legal process by which a lender terminates a borrower's ownership rights and forces the sale of a property to recover the unpaid loan balance after the borrower has defaulted on mortgage payments.
Read definition →Forbearance is a formal agreement between a borrower and lender to temporarily reduce or suspend mortgage payments, typically due to financial hardship. It is not forgiveness—the missed payments must eventually be repaid through a repayment plan, deferral, or loan modification.
Read definition →REO (Real Estate Owned) is property that a lender takes back after a borrower defaults and the foreclosure auction fails to produce a winning bid above the outstanding loan balance.
Read definition →A loan modification is a permanent change to an existing mortgage's terms — interest rate, loan length, or principal — negotiated directly with the lender to make payments more manageable.
Read definition →A short sale is a real estate transaction in which the lender agrees to accept a payoff less than the outstanding mortgage balance, allowing the homeowner to sell the property and avoid foreclosure.
Read definition →A default notice is a formal written notice from a lender to a borrower stating that a loan obligation has been breached and triggering the pre-foreclosure process if the default is not cured within the specified timeframe.
Read definition →