Published in: FMS Perspectives
“Transitions to delinquency show persistent increases for auto and credit card debt; auto loan delinquency rates especially problematic for subprime auto finance loans.”
So reads the press release from The Federal Reserve Bank of New York for a recent Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit. Headlines like these are becoming more common in relation to auto lending as regulators cite concerns over several years of strong growth alongside eased underwriting standards and unabated flows into delinquency.
The unprecedented growth in auto debt can be derived in part by the underlying demand for the collateral. Annual auto sales have seen several consecutive years of growth, setting an all-time high of 17.5 million units in 2016. This growth has trickled down to auto lenders, as total auto loan debt notched a new all-time record at $1.21 trillion in outstanding balances at the end of the third quarter of 2017. This represents a 48% increase from ten years ago – second only to a 157% increase in student loan debt – while total household debt increased 7% over the same time period.
This growth has the OCC’s attention – the agency took notice as early as the spring of 2012, citing banks launching new products, services and processes to catalyze asset growth, and specifically mentioning the growth in indirect auto lending. While growth in and of itself is not necessarily bad, the OCC has consistently discussed auto lending, which is why it is important for financial institutions to understand the reasons behind the elevated risk status.
Originations
Total originated auto loans surpassed $430 billion through the first three quarters of 2017, with roughly $88 billion of those loans considered to be subprime (credit scores below 620). Subprime auto loan originations have not been growing as fast as in preceding years, as some major market participations have capped subprime production, but overall originations continue unabated, with an ongoing streak of year-over-year increases.
At the close of 2017, roughly 20% of auto loan originations were subprime, compared to 21% in 2016, 23% in 2015 and 29% pre-crisis in 2007. Despite this decrease, Figure 1 shows that subprime origination volume has nevertheless has accelerated to roughly pre-crisis levels today, while originations with excellent credit have far surpassed pre-crisis levels.
Figure 1
