Mind on My Money: Black Personal Finance 101
addicted to debt
As a nation, America's relationship with debt is complex, and often frustrating for the average consumer. According to data from the Federal Reserve (April 2014), Americans were carrying approximately $854.2 billion in revolving charges.
The average household carries $7,087 in credit card debt. If the households that don't carry monthly balances on their cards are factored out, that number translates into an average $15,191 of unsecured debt. Americans carry another $891 billion in auto loans and other revolving debt. Then there is the approximate $8.15 trillion in mortgage debt that consumers are carrying, as well as the $1.26 Trillion of student loan debt carried by college graduates . On a national level, the debt trend continues. The federal government is currently on the hook for $17.6 Trillion (that "T" is correct) in Treasury debt. And with the total value of the U.S. economy at $17 trillion, our government is virtually running on paper. All the preceding information was provided to illustrate the simple, undeniable truth: America is addicted to debt. And this addiction comes at a cost that may prove to be too expensive. At a time when real wages, adjusted for inflation, are falling, the value of the dollar is decreasing, inflation is rising and the cost of everyday life skyrocketing, the real cost of debt isn't only to be measured in the dollar value of the bills paid today, but also in the loss of tomorrow's dollars mortgaged off on today's debts. All the preceding information was provided to illustrate the simple, undeniable truth: America is addicted to debt. And this addiction comes at a cost that may prove to be too expensive. At a time when real wages, adjusted for inflation, are falling, the value of the dollar is decreasing, inflation is rising and the cost of everyday life skyrocketing, the real cost of debt isn't only to be measured in the dollar value of the bills paid today, but also in the loss of tomorrow's dollars mortgaged off on today's debts. next: they don't want you to know
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