The CNC report shows that the share of highly indebted households fell slightly in November Brazil

Data released this Thursday (4) indicate that the percentage of indebted households rose from 79.5% in October, the highest level since 2010, to 79.2% in November, returning to the September level, but it remains above the 77.0% recorded in November 2024.

The survey also found a decline in default rates, which went from 30.5% in October to 30.0% last month, back to the level seen in July. But the level is still higher than 29.4% in November 2024. The percentage of households declared unable to repay outstanding debts completes the trio of indicators that declined, falling from 13.2% in October to 12.9% in November, which is the lowest level since August and equal to the level in November 2024.

“Even as interest rates continue to rise, research indicates an improvement in both the perception and structure of debt. The end of the year is one of more spending and celebrations linked to purchases, but it is also the thirteenth year and financial reorganization,” says the head of the CNC-Sesc-Senac system, José Roberto Tadros.

In terms of depth of debt, the group that considers itself “overindebted” decreased (16.0%), and the group “underindebted” increased (32.8%). On the other hand, the percentage of families with debt for more than a year increased, for the third month in a row, to 32.1%.

Longer defaults also lost steam: the proportion of households with accounts more than 90 days delinquent fell from 49.0% to 48.5%, the lowest level since August. Among consumers with greater income commitment, there was a decline two months after the increase: the proportion of those allocating more than half of their income to debt repayment fell from 19.1% to 18.8% between October and November. Those committing between 11% and 50% of their income to pay off debt represented the majority (56.7%), meaning an average commitment of 29.5% in November.

In the credit market, the 90-day default rate in operations with free resources for individuals reached 6.7% in October, corresponding to R$159 billion of arrears, the highest volume in the historical series and a sign that the situation still requires caution, despite the most favorable month recorded by Peic. The expansion of free credit concessions slowed over 12 months from 14.3% in April to 10.3% in October, reflecting a combination of higher interest rates and lower demand for financing from households.

The analysis by income range shows that debt fell in most groups, with the sharpest decline among households with incomes exceeding 10 minimum wages, while the group between 5 and 10 minimum wages was the only one to record an increase in the month. Defaults decreased across the spectrum, with the largest decline among households with incomes between 3 and 5 minimum wages, which also led to a decline in the share of those who claim to be unable to repay their outstanding debts, indicating an additional effort on the part of this class to settle outstanding debts.

Fabio Bentis, chief economist at the National Development Commission, highlights that the trade sector is directly linked to the population’s access to credit, although it generates the risk of increasing debt. “Brazilians take advantage of Black Friday to save on end-of-year gifts, paying the bills for these purchases with the second installment of the thirteenth. This is an antidote to the very high level of defaults and interest, especially on credit cards, capable of doubling the value of the debt in a few months,” highlights Bentes.

According to ECE forecasts, despite the expected decline in December, 2025 should end with significantly higher household indebtedness (+2.4 percentage points) and more defaults (+0.5 percentage points) than at the end of 2024, keeping the issue of expensive credit and the risk of default at the heart of the 2026 economic agenda.