National Credit Card and Debt Statistics
Consumer Debt:
In the last decade, the average U.S. household
consumer debt (non-mortgage) has increased from approximately
$8,500 to $14,500. (Federal Reserve Statistical Releases and U.S.
Census Bureau)
Credit card debt now averages $8,562
per household.
According to the Federal Reserve, outstanding
non-secured consumer debt rose from $355 billion in 1980 to $1.2
trillion in 1996 to $1.65 trillion in 2001.
The average American family is paying about
$1,100 a year in interest on credit cards.
Interest rates on bank credit cards have widened
as a result of the eleven rate cuts by the Feds in 2001. Card
rates, after the introductory periods, now range from 4.75% to
35.00%, the widest spread ever.
The number of consumers who are enrolled in
debt management programs has increased from approximately 400,000
consumers in 1995 to over 1,000,000 in 2001. (Industry sources)
There were more than 1.5 million personal bankruptcies
filed in 2001. (American Bankruptcy Institute)
A Chapter 7 bankruptcy may stay on your credit
report for as long as 10 years. (Equifax, Experian, Trans Union)
A Chapter 13 bankruptcy generally stays on your
credit report for 7 years, (Equifax, Experian, Trans Union) Note:
During this 7-year period, a bankruptcy in your credit history
will likely either eliminate your ability to get credit or make
the credit you can get very expensive in terms of fees and interest
rates.
Student Debt:
According to an analysis by Sallie Mae, which
provides federal and private education loans for undergraduate
and graduate students and families, 10% of college students owe
between $3,000 and $7,000 on their credit cards.
Eighty-three percent of undergraduate college
students have credit cards, a 24% increase since 1998.
The percentage of college students with four
or more credit cards nearly doubled in three years to 47% in 2001.
On average most new college students with four
or more credit cards nearly doubled in three years to 47% in 2001.
Around 41% of graduating college seniors also
carry an average credit-card balance of more than $3,000. (State
Public Interest Research Groups' (PIRGs) Higher Education Project.)
Credit Card Debt:
Adjusted for inflation, the Census Bureau reported
that the median household income fell 2.2 percent in 2001 to $42,
288. It was the first decline since 1991.
Among the 60% of American cardholders who do
not pay off their credit card balance each month, nearly half
made just the minimum payment. This means that about one out of
four cardholders in the USA now make minimum payments. (Cardweb.com).
Credit card fees paid by consumers jumped 10
percent in 2001 to $13.6 billion and represent the fastest-growing
source of revenue for bank-card issuers, according to Credit Card
Management, a trade publication.
Late-payment revenues, which have risen from
$1.7 billion in 1996 to $7.3 billion, are the third-biggest revenue
source for credit card companies, behind interest income and fees
paid by merchants who accept credit card payments.
Credit card late fees average nearly $29, up
12.8 percent from 1995, when the average penalty was $12.64, according
to CardWeb. Many credit card companies charge as much as $35 for
a late payment. And the larger your balance, the higher your late
fee.
According to an informal CardWeb poll, six in
ten credit card holders say they've been hit with a late fee over
the past year.
At the end of 2001, 40 percent of credit card
holders were paying off their debt each month, compared to 29
percent 11 years earlier.
Credit card issuers mailed a record 5 billion
card offers in 2001, according to the research firm BAJGlobal.
That's a 42 percent increase from 3.5 billion card offers sent
in 2000, which at that time was a record.
The average American household
holds 14.27 credit cards.
