Financial Literacy

General Consumer Debt Statistics

Credit card debt is only part of the picture when it comes to consumer debt in America. Total consumer debt in the U.S. is at $2.43 trillion as of May, 2011. Not surprisingly, this has caused serious economic fallout for many Americans.

• Total bankruptcy filings reached 1.4 million in 2009
• Total consumer debt per household now averages $16,046 (down from $35,245 prior to the economic downturn in 2008)
  • Total debt per household with credit cards still averages $54,000 (also down from $93,850 in 2008)
• Young Americans (age 25-34) have the second highest rate of bankruptcy after Americans 35-44, meaning the younger you are the tougher your financial situation seems to be
• The average college student graduates with $20,000 of debt
• Nearly 1 in 5 Americans ages 18-24 qualify themselves as being in “debt hardship”
• 26% of Americans admit to not paying their bills on time
• Prior to the economic downturn, 14.7% of American families held debt exceeding 40% of their household income

Given the tough state of the economy Americans are now struggling to get their finances back on track. Particularly for families with credit card debt this can be a difficult journey. In many cases, you could take the next 20-30 years to pay back what you owe right now alone – and that’s if you don’t buy anything else on credit!

http://www.consolidatedcredit.org/credit-card-debt/consumer-debt-facts/