Hawaii had the nation’s 20th-worst mortgage delinquency rate in the third quarter as 5 percent of the state’s homeowners missed two or more payments during the period.

The state, however, still fared better than the nation as a whole.

Florida had the highest delinquency rate at 14.08 percent, followed by Nevada at 12.39 percent and New Jersey at 7.60 percent, according to TransUnion, one of three major credit reporting agencies. The national average was 5.88 percent. North Dakota had the lowest delinquency rate at 1.47 percent.

TransUnion said Tuesday the 5 percent of Hawaii mortgage holders who were late with their payments by 60 days in the third quarter was an improvement from 5.28 percent in the third quarter of 2010.

Hawaii’s average mortgage debt per borrower of $334,606 was third highest in the country behind the District of Columbia, $374,241, and California, $339,546.

"Consumers in Hawaii, as in the rest of the country, were hit with several unanticipated shocks during the third quarter, including the U.S. credit rating downgrade, stock price declines, European debt concerns, stubbornly high unemployment, more downward pressure on home values and low consumer confidence," said Tim Martin, group vice president of U.S. housing in TransUnion’s financial services business unit.

"All of this affects a borrower’s net worth and desire, or ability, to continue making house payments — especially if they are facing negative equity in their homes due to price depreciation."

TransUnion’s data are culled from 27 million credit reports, representing about 10 percent of all U.S. consumers who actively use some form of credit.