Among the 28.7 million Credit Karma members with at least one mortgage, members held more than $4.9 trillion in mortgage debt across nearly 25 million open accounts as of May 27, 2022. Average mortgage debt by member was $231,464.
Read on for more findings, including a breakdown of mortgage debt by generation, state and more. (Click here to learn more about our methodology.)
Average mortgage debt by generation
Millennials and Generation X Credit Karma members hold the highest average mortgage debt, with $256,583 and $237,392, respectively, while the Silent Generation has the least ($162,593).
| Generation | Average mortgage debt |
|---|---|
| Generation Z (born 1997–2012)* | $192,128 |
| Millennials (born 1981–1996) | $256,583 |
| Generation X (born 1965–1980) | $237,392 |
| Baby boomer (born 1946–1964 | $186,192 |
| Silent Generation (born 1928–1945) | $162,593 |
*This study only considers data from members who were 18 or older as of May 27, 2022.
Average mortgage debt by state
Washington, D.C., residents have the highest average mortgage debt of $447,267. In terms of states, California tops the list, with members having the highest average mortgage debt of $421,535, followed by Hawaii ($409,711) and Washington ($333,158).
Members in West Virginia have the lowest average mortgage debt — $130,657. Mississippi is next lowest, with an average mortgage debt of $139,800.
This table ranks all 50 states and Washington, D.C., from highest to lowest average mortgage debt among Credit Karma members.
| Rank | State | Credit Karma members’ average mortgage debt |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | District of Columbia | $447,267 |
| 2 | California | $421,535 |
| 3 | Hawaii | $409,711 |
| 4 | Washington | $333,158 |
| 5 | Massachusetts | $306,893 |
| 6 | Colorado | $300,493 |
| 7 | Utah | $289,185 |
| 8 | Oregon | $285,070 |
| 9 | New York | $283,954 |
| 10 | Maryland | $282,683 |
| 11 | New Jersey | $280,711 |
| 12 | Nevada | $272,724 |
| 13 | Virginia | $263,296 |
| 14 | Alaska | $257,762 |
| 15 | Arizona | $251,478 |
| 16 | Connecticut | $230,408 |
| 17 | Rhode Island | $227,530 |
| 18 | Idaho | $226,049 |
| 19 | Florida | $223,804 |
| 20 | New Hampshire | $216,855 |
| 21 | Delaware | $214,975 |
| 22 | Montana | $213,490 |
| 23 | Minnesota | $212,568 |
| 24 | Wyoming | $204,201 |
| 25 | Georgia | $204,106 |
| 26 | Texas | $203,260 |
| 27 | North Carolina | $198,442 |
| 28 | Illinois | $196,710 |
| 29 | North Dakota | $196,027 |
| 30 | Tennessee | $187,394 |
| 31 | New Mexico | $184,449 |
| 32 | South Dakota | $179,408 |
| 33 | South Carolina | $179,329 |
| 34 | Vermont | $174,991 |
| 35 | Pennsylvania | $173,813 |
| 36 | Louisiana | $169,479 |
| 37 | Maine | $169,295 |
| 38 | Wisconsin | $169,242 |
| 39 | Nebraska | $167,021 |
| 40 | Missouri | $162,955 |
| 41 | Kansas | $161,861 |
| 42 | Alabama | $160,373 |
| 43 | Michigan | $156,859 |
| 44 | Oklahoma | $155,014 |
| 45 | Indiana | $150,555 |
| 46 | Ohio | $150,318 |
| 47 | Iowa | $148,746 |
| 48 | Kentucky | $148,519 |
| 49 | Arkansas | $145,102 |
| 50 | Mississippi | $139,800 |
| 51 | West Virginia | $130,657 |
Higher average mortgage debt may be due, in part, to where members live. Those with the lowest average mortgage debt tend to live in states we have identified as some of the cheapest states to live in.
Conversely, those with the highest average mortgage debt live in some of the states ranked the most expensive.
Average mortgage debt by credit score
Credit Karma members with lower VantageScore 3.0 credit scores tend to have lower average mortgage debt, perhaps in part because they’ve been approved for smaller mortgage loans.
Those with scores of 300 to 600 have the lowest average mortgage debt — $182,721 — while those with scores of 781 to 850 average $233,535 in mortgage debt. However, members with scores of 661 to 780 actually have the highest average mortgage debt.
| VantageScore 3.0 score band | Average total mortgage debt | Average of next mortgage payment | Avg. account age (in months) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 300–600 | $182,721 | $1,228 | 92.4 |
| 601–660 | $207,868 | $1,443 | 103.1 |
| 661–780 | $246,989 | $1,678 | 116.7 |
| 781–850 | $233,535 | $1,694 | 154.5 |
Lenders consider many factors in mortgage loan underwriting, including credit scores, credit history, debt-to-income ratios and more. Depending on all of these various factors, lenders then decide whether to extend you a mortgage loan and the amount.
Average monthly mortgage payment
The average next mortgage payment for Credit Karma members is $1,600. But the average payment is typically higher for those with higher total mortgage debt, as you might expect. For example, millennial members, who have the highest total mortgage debt, have an average next payment of $1,672.
Generation X, which has the second-highest average mortgage debt, has an average next payment of $1,689. This may indicate that millennials on the whole have slightly more buying power. Conversely, Silent Generation members, who have the lowest average total mortgage debt at only $162,593, have an average next payment of only $1,136.
Tips for managing mortgage debt
If you need more breathing room in your budget, there are steps you can take to get help managing your mortgage debt.
Refinance your mortgage
Refinancing your mortgage loan may reduce your monthly mortgage payments or the total amount of interest you end up paying on your mortgage. But if your credit scores have dropped, your home value has decreased or interest rates haven’t gone down since you got your original mortgage, refinancing may not make sense for you.
Consider mortgage relief programs
If your mortgage payments become too much to handle because of events like a job loss, a costly health crisis or an unexpected expense, take a look at some of the different mortgage relief programs that might help.
With mortgage forbearance programs, for example, homeowners can work out an agreement with their lenders to pause or lower their mortgage payments for a period of time.
Methodology
To determine averages across mortgage debt, we analyzed the accounts of more than 28 million U.S. Credit Karma members who had been active on the site within the last 36 months and who have a mortgage on their credit reports. All aggregate data analyzed was pulled on May 27, 2022, and came from members’ TransUnion credit reports. The averages were based on information from the last 90 days. For the purposes of this analysis, mortgage debt is defined as any unpaid balances existing on members’ open mortgage accounts in aggregate at the time the data was pulled. All numbers in this report were rounded to the nearest whole.