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Americans are piling up credit card debt to cope with inflation
CBS ^ | 9/19/22 | KHRISTOPHER J. BROOKS

Posted on 09/19/2022 2:41:30 PM PDT by EnderWiggin1970

More Americans are racking up credit card debt as inflation pushes up the cost of food, utilities and other staples.

According a new report from CreditCards.com, 60% of credit card holders have been carrying balances on their cards for at least a year, up 10% from 2021.

"It's even harder to get out of debt when it's spending on necessities that got you into that position in the first place," said Ted Rossman, senior analyst at Creditcards.com. "These expenses aren't easily avoided."

(Excerpt) Read more at cbsnews.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Government
KEYWORDS: biden; bidenflation; creditcard; debt; democrats; economy; inflation; joebiden
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If true, going from 10% to 60% is explosive news, and pretty well guarantees a nasty recession as consumers simply run out of ability to keep up the pace of purchases (with all that implies).
1 posted on 09/19/2022 2:41:30 PM PDT by EnderWiggin1970
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To: EnderWiggin1970

You misread that, it’s up 10%, not from 10%. That could mean it was 50% or 55% a year ago. Not 10%


2 posted on 09/19/2022 2:44:48 PM PDT by rb22982
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To: rb22982

It is still a fairly big increase though, and it is the beginning of a huge consumer debt spiral.


3 posted on 09/19/2022 2:48:45 PM PDT by Codeflier (I am just going to assume you are a Democrat if you call me a Putin supporter and ignore you.)
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To: EnderWiggin1970
But Joe, the genius of the democrat party, said the inflation just went up by an inch. So no big deal.

Joe is focused like a laser on those pesky MAGA republicans. Those pesky muckrakers are saying things that should not be uttered.

4 posted on 09/19/2022 2:49:35 PM PDT by Moorings
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To: EnderWiggin1970

This why “consumer spending” has held up, misleading the media that the economy is healthy. Borrowing money to pay higher prices = higher aggregate spending. Not good but Biden thinks it’s great.


5 posted on 09/19/2022 2:51:33 PM PDT by hinckley buzzard ( Resist the narrative.)
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To: rb22982

Thank you! I’m sure you are right. Not good, but not the head-scratcher that I misinterpreted it to be.


6 posted on 09/19/2022 2:55:48 PM PDT by EnderWiggin1970
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To: rb22982

Joey dirty diapers donors are very happy


7 posted on 09/19/2022 2:55:56 PM PDT by ronnie raygun
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To: EnderWiggin1970

I’m using 3% of my available credit. Maybe I should buy gold and silver on credit in anticipation of a Democrat credit bailout when the recession gets really, really bad.


8 posted on 09/19/2022 2:56:58 PM PDT by CarmichaelPatriot (Recovering Kalifornian... Loving Alabama!)
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To: EnderWiggin1970
Joe looked at the inflation rate graph, put his finger on the chart to measure. Yup, it only went up by an inch, so all good.
9 posted on 09/19/2022 2:59:01 PM PDT by Moorings
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To: Codeflier

As the article points out, the 10% increase of those carrying a balance coincides with the interest rates on those balances also skyrocketing as rates are jacked up. So from that standpoint this is still a very ugly sign. In principle people should be paying down debt as interest rates increase, not piling it on.


10 posted on 09/19/2022 2:59:39 PM PDT by EnderWiggin1970
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To: Moorings

Maybe Joey Crappy Pants can sign an EO and just “forgive” $10k just like the student loan EO


11 posted on 09/19/2022 3:00:51 PM PDT by OHPatriot (Si vis pacem, para bellum)
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To: Codeflier

I would think Biden could do an executive order. Just like he did the Student Loan...


12 posted on 09/19/2022 3:00:55 PM PDT by rovenstinez
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To: EnderWiggin1970
My wife got a 4% raise today. Annual evaluation. That doesn't make a dent in the impact of inflation. I suspect lots of others will be in a similar boat. The only solution is a significantly reduce purchases. Essentials only. We haven't seen the impact of the property tax assessments. I'm estimating a need to set aside another $100/month for my primary residence and increase the rent on the rental by $100/month.
13 posted on 09/19/2022 3:01:08 PM PDT by Myrddin
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To: EnderWiggin1970

I’m a low-end landlord. The people I rent to are generally employed but at minimum wage. They generally own two cars that are late models and sometimes new. They own amazing amounts of stuff, all of which was bought new. So much stuff, in fact that generally the closets are so stuffed they can’t close and at least one wall of a bedroom is piled with boxes of stuff. They often don’t own their furniture and generally, they owe more on the cars than they are worth. The problem is not poverty. It’s a paucity of reasoning ability.

Frequently, when they move out, I am left with several dump trailer loads of stuff, often new in the package, to dispose of. When I call them, they say things like, I don’t have room for it, or we don’t need it anymore. No, I don’t have the time or interest in selling it, so it goes to the dump. Several times they’ve left money, once $600 on the floor of a closet and often there are drugs in clothing pockets. They never take change with them, and I’ve seen a pile of in the garbage.

I’m all out of sympathy for America’s “poor.”


14 posted on 09/19/2022 3:04:38 PM PDT by Gen.Blather (Wait! I said that out loud? )
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To: rovenstinez

Yeah, there is a solution that Joe knows well. He is going to send a check to everyone to help pay their credit card bill.


15 posted on 09/19/2022 3:09:30 PM PDT by Moorings
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To: EnderWiggin1970

And of course rates are rising, credits drying up…layoffs coming… they’re going to start redefining many more economic terms to keep the narrative going.


16 posted on 09/19/2022 3:22:48 PM PDT by MrRelevant
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To: EnderWiggin1970

My concern about credit card debt as a short term inflation cushion is something I’ve been talking about with friends and family for some time.
It delays the full economic impact of rapidly rising inflation. But, makes it even worse as the interest on those unpaid balances also rapidly builds up and compounds the problem.
Soon it all comes crashing home.


17 posted on 09/19/2022 3:33:10 PM PDT by sjmjax
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To: Gen.Blather

So why aren’t you an eBay seller? If you don’t have time, hire an eBay seller to sell the stuff on commission. NIB sells, and there are plenty of guys who need stock.


18 posted on 09/19/2022 3:35:06 PM PDT by proxy_user
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To: rb22982
That could mean it was 50% or 55% a year ago.

Last year's number, this year's number......either one is mind boggling.

19 posted on 09/19/2022 3:40:58 PM PDT by 03A3 (If we can defund the police, we sure as hell can defund the FBI)
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To: Gen.Blather
I hear you. Back when I lived in a small town in Illinois, the rule of thumb was that the people who shopped at the thrift store in town (like my family) were the workers with real jobs. The people sporting new clothes were the ones with, shall we say, a government income.

Walking around in residential neighborhoods looking for a house, my wife and I would at times burst out laughing. No one parks their car in their garage because it is stuffed full of stuff. The houses are larger than ever, with fewer children than ever, but are so full of stuff that there's a storage rental facility seemingly at the edge of every neighborhood for all their extra stuff. And yards that once had space for playsets and space for kids to run around are now filled with trailers and RV's and boats and motorcycles and sheds filled with more stuff. Once you awaken to it, America's gluttony of materialism has reached absurd proportions.

What happens when the bill comes due?

20 posted on 09/19/2022 3:45:44 PM PDT by EnderWiggin1970
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