Credit card issuers require borrowers to make a minimum monthly payment on their debt that's typically between 2% and 4% of the total balance owed, Experian reports. This means it could take more than 22 years to repay $20,000 worth of debt by making the minimum credit card payment.
If you owe $20,000 and make a 3% payment a month — $600 — it would take 45 months to pay that off and you'd accrue $6,707 in interest. If your minimum payment is 2%, or $400, you'd rack up $13,403 in interest.
If someone made only the minimum monthly payments on a credit card with a $25,000 balance, charging the average annual rate of 16.22%, it would take them nearly 30 years to be free of that debt, and they'll have paid more than $32,500 in interest by the end, according to an example provided by Ted Rossman, industry ...
Pay more than the minimum amount due each month.
It's important to pay at least the minimum payment each month to avoid a late payment, but just paying the minimum on all your credit cards will prolong your repayment period and increase the interest you'll ultimately pay.
In order to pay off $25,000 in credit card debt within 36 months, you need to pay $905 per month, assuming an APR of 18%. While you would incur $7,596 in interest charges during that time, you could avoid much of this extra cost and pay off your debt faster by using a 0% APR balance transfer credit card.
If your total balance is more than 30% of the total credit limit, you may be in too much debt. Some experts consider it best to keep credit utilization between 1% and 10%, while anything between 11% and 30% is typically considered good.
According to a 2020 Experian study, the average American carries $92,727 in consumer debt. Consumer debt includes a variety of personal credit accounts, such as credit cards, auto loans, mortgages, personal loans, and student loans.
According to CNBC, it takes the average American about 13 months to pay off credit card debt with an average balance of about $8,200. Unlike other debt such as mortgages or student loans, making the minimum payment on your credit card debt won't get you very far in paying it off.
Generally speaking, a good debt-to-income ratio is anything less than or equal to 36%. Meanwhile, any ratio above 43% is considered too high.
In general, there are three debt repayment strategies that can help people pay down or pay off debt more efficiently. Pay the smallest debt as fast as possible. Pay minimums on all other debt. Then pay that extra toward the next largest debt.
While that seems like a lot of money, it goes almost nowhere as far as paying off the balance. The average credit card interest rate in 2021 was 16.13%. With 16% interest, it would take 447 months (more than 37 years) to pay off $30,000 in credit card debt. The final bill would be $69,459.47.
It's Best to Pay Your Credit Card Balance in Full Each Month
Leaving a balance will not help your credit scores—it will just cost you money in the form of interest. Carrying a high balance on your credit cards has a negative impact on scores because it increases your credit utilization ratio.
If you'd like to buy a home, carrying credit card debt doesn't have to keep you from fulfilling your dream. But paying down the debt will lower your debt-to-income ratio (DTI) and could strengthen your credit score. That, in turn, will help you qualify for a home loan and potentially score you a lower interest rate.
If you have credit card debt, you're not alone. On average, Americans carry $6,194 in credit card debt, according to the 2019 Experian Consumer Credit Review.
If you want to improve and maintain a good credit score, it's more reasonable to keep your balance at or below 30% of your credit limit. For example, that means your credit card balance should always be below $300 on a credit card with a $1,000 limit.
The average debt for individual consumers dropped from $6,194 in 2019 to $5,315 in 2020. In fact, the average balance declined in every state.
Making additional principal payments will shorten the length of your mortgage term and allow you to build equity faster. Because your balance is being paid down faster, you'll have fewer total payments to make, in-turn leading to more savings.
On a $300,000 mortgage with a 3% APR, you'd pay $2,071.74 per month on a 15-year loan and $1,264.81 on a 30-year loan, not including escrow. Escrow costs vary depending on your home's location, insurer, and other details. Credible is here to help with your pre-approval.