Around 5 million households did not pay their rent or mortgage in December, and 3.5 million renters and landlords feel threatened with losing their homes, according to a new study by the Association of Mortgage Bankers.

There are, however, a few bright spots. The 5 million households that missed a payment in December were down from the 6 million households in September.

And overall, the $ 14.2 billion in missed mortgage payments in the fourth quarter of 2020 was down from the $ 19.4 billion in the third quarter of 2020, according to the MBA.

Young Americans feel pain disproportionately, the data suggests. Forty-three percent of student borrowers missed their payments in the fourth quarter of 2020, compared to 40% for the third quarter of 2020.

The slowly improving numbers could be attributed to the rollout of a second stimulus bill in December which included $ 25 billion in dedicated rental assistance, $ 600 in direct stimulus checks, $ 300 per week in improved unemployment benefits through March and an extension of the CDC’s moratorium on evictions through 31 January.

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But the next few months will be just as crucial for homeowners, tenants and student borrowers who are in arrears and seeking additional government help, according to Gary Engelhardt, professor of economics at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs of Syracuse University. . To that end, Engelhardt said, the continued deployment of COVID-19 vaccines and the expected economic upturn brought about by the $ 1.9 trillion project proposed by Biden American rescue plan could have a huge effect on the housing industry.

“A rapid vaccine rollout will hopefully slow the virus down and lead to a more significant reopening of the economy later this year,” Engelhardt said. “It would help the job market and give affected households the opportunity to return to work, resume their housing and student debt payments, and repay overdue amounts.”

Edward Seiler, associate vice president of housing economics at the MBA, added: “Providing targeted relief to those struggling up to the ‘new normal’ will be essential to avoid further disruption to the housing market. and a global economic recovery. “

The relief of the landowners was essential; reported that 12% of tenants received permission from their landlord to delay or reduce their monthly payment in December, according to the MBA.

In total, rental property owners reported a loss of $ 7.2 billion in revenue from missed rent payments in the fourth quarter of 2020 – down, however, from more than $ 9.1 billion in missed payments in the third quarter.

On the loan side, 5.3% of homeowners missed one payment, 2.0% missed two payments, 1.5% missed three payments, and 4.9% missed four or more payments. A total of 18% of mortgage holders received permission from their lender to delay or reduce their monthly payment in December.

“This confidence is perhaps an indication that direct controls and improved unemployment benefits, rent assistance, mortgage abstention programs and a federal moratorium on evictions have so far been effective in keeping people at home, “said Engelhardt.

Total student loan missed payments were estimated at $ 31.6 billion for the fourth quarter. Interestingly, the number of student loan borrowers who received unemployment benefits declined to around 7% in December after reaching 8% in September.

Thirty-six million people have missed at least one student loan payment since the start of the pandemic.

The idea of ​​canceling student debt – or at least a large part of an individual’s balance – has been a hot topic ever since Joe Biden ran for office and was elected president. During the weekend, Democrats urged Biden write off $ 50,000 in student debt per debt holder.

Biden, who has said he supports up to $ 10,000 student loan cancellations per borrower, and his administration are examining whether it can take steps to alleviate student debt through executive action , according to the Associated Press.

Any debt relief would go a long way to helping student loan borrowers pay for their housing, according to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), who are lead the group urging Biden to spend the $ 50,000 credit.