According to The Wall Street Journal, U.S. mortgage delinquency rates fell in the third quarter, coming in lower for the seventh period in a row.

The credit-information company said that mortgage delinquencies of at least 60 days were down at 4.09% at quarter's end, compared with 5.33% a year earlier and 4.32% for the second quarter.

The company expects the delinquency rate will be just under 4% at year's end.

"We looked at all 52 million installment-based mortgages in the U.S. and the trend is clear–the percentage of borrowers willing and able to make their mortgage payments continues to improve," said TransUnion executive Tim Martin. "The overall delinquency rate is still high relative to 'normal,' but a 23% year over year improvement is great news for homeowners and their lenders."