Sunday, February 18, 2018

It's official: Most Americans are currently in debt - Note for a discussion, "E Pluribus Unum? What Keeps the United States United."


Maurie Backman, The Motley Fool, USA TODAY

uncaptioned image from article

And they need to do something about it before the problem gets worse.

Excerpt:
It's no secret that America is a nation that runs on debt, but it may surprise you to learn that the overwhelming majority of U.S. adults owe money in some way, shape, or form. According to new data from Comet, here's how many Americans have debt at present:

80.9% of Baby Boomers

79.9% of Gen Xers

81.5% of Millennials

While many Americans owe more in mortgage and student debt than any other type, they also carry credit card, auto, and medical debt, the latter of which is the No. 1 cause of personal bankruptcy filings in the country.

Furthermore, while millennials are the most likely to be in debt, they seem to be abusing their credit cards the least. The average amount owed by Millennials on a credit card (or combination of credit cards) is just $4,868, compared to $7,175 for Baby Boomers and $8,291 for Gen Xers. On the other hand, younger Americans carry the highest levels of mortgage debt, and while that's technically the good kind to have, it, too, needs to be kept in check. ...

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