While the average American has $90,460 in debt, this includes all types of consumer debt products, from credit cards to personal loans, mortgages and student debt.
How much money does the average American owe? 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.
Debt-to-income ratio is your monthly debt obligations compared to your gross monthly income (before taxes), expressed as a percentage. A good debt-to-income ratio is less than or equal to 36%. Any debt-to-income ratio above 43% is considered to be too much debt.
The 20/10 rule of thumb limits consumer debt payments to no more than 20% of your annual take-home income and no more than 10% of your monthly take-home income. This guideline can help you limit the amount of debt you carry, which is important for your financial health and your credit score.
Likewise, millennial consumers (ages 25 to 40) have an average of $27,251 in non-mortgage debt, presumably across credit cards, auto loans, personal loans and student loans.
“Shark Tank” investor Kevin O'Leary has said the ideal age to be debt-free is 45, especially if you want to retire by age 60. Being debt-free — including paying off your mortgage — by your mid-40s puts you on the early path toward success, O'Leary argued.
Is being debt-free the new rich? Yes, as long as you have money and assets, in addition to no debts. Living loan-free is a fantastic way to stay financially secure, and it is possible for anyone. While there are a couple of downsides to being debt-free, they are minimal.
Many people would likely say $30,000 is a considerable amount of money. Paying off that much debt may feel overwhelming, but it is possible. With careful planning and calculated actions, you can slowly work toward paying off your debt.
About 52% of Americans owe $2,500 or less on their credit cards. If you're looking at $5,000 or higher, you should really get motivated to knock out that debt quickly.
Compared to 2021 standards, respondents to the 2020 survey described the threshold for wealth as being a net worth of $2.6 million.
It's not at all uncommon for households to be swimming in more that twice as much credit card debt. But just because a $15,000 balance isn't rare doesn't mean it's a good thing. Credit card debt is seriously expensive. Most credit cards charge between 15% and 29% interest, so paying down that debt should be a priority.
Too much debt can turn good debt into bad debt.
You can borrow too much for important goals like college, a home, or a car. Too much debt, even if it is at a low interest rate, can become bad debt. Carrying debt without a good plan to pay it off can lead to an unsustainable lifestyle.
When you have no debt, your credit score and other indicators of financial health, such as debt-to-income ratio (DTI), tend to be very good. This can lead to a higher credit score and be useful in other ways.
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.
The simplest way to make this calculation is to divide $10,000 by 12. This would mean you need to pay $833 per month to have contributed your goal amount to your debt pay-off plan. This number, though, doesn't factor in the interest on your debt.
Generally speaking, most mortgage lenders use a 43% DTI ratio as a maximum for borrowers. If you have a DTI ratio higher than 43%, you probably are carrying too much debt because you are less likely to qualify for a mortgage loan.
The student loan payment should be limited to 8-10 percent of the gross monthly income. For example, for an average starting salary of $30,000 per year, with expected monthly income of $2,500, the monthly student loan payment using 8 percent should be no more than $200.
The auto loan itself would be considered the "debt." The payments toward it would be considered "debt payments." With regard to your credit report, if you are applying for another loan somewhere and they looked at your debt-to-income ratio, the monthly auto loan payments would be included on the debt side.
Many people see debt as a necessary evil, but it still is possible to live—and thrive—without using debt or worrying about your credit scores. The benefits of debt-free living are easy to understand, but it's important to know what challenges you'll face and how to overcome them if you stop playing using credit.
Even though household net worth is on the rise in America (at $141 trillion in the summer of 2021)—so is debt. The total personal debt in the U.S. is at an all-time high of $14.96 trillion. The average American debt (per U.S. adult) is $58,604 and 77% of American households have at least some type of debt.
A shocking 77% of Americans have some type of debt—that's nearly 8 out of every 10 people! And how many times have you heard one of these money myths: You need to have a good credit score!