|
Do you what’s the best investment you can make? It’s not in government bonds, it’s not in the stock market, and it’s certainly not in real estate. It’s in paying off your consumer debt. Take a look at some of these startling facts about credit card debt.
In 2003, 1.6 million American households filed for bankruptcy. That’s one out of every 75 families! A shocking figure, and yet no surprise when you consider that Americans hold over 1.2 BILLION credit cards.
The first credit card, the Diners Club card, was meant for traveling businessmen to use in restaurants. Today there are over 20,000 different types of credit cards available, and you know what happens to the people who use their cards in restaurants? They end up paying 50% more than if they had paid cash.
It’s estimated that about 25% of all personal spending by Americans is done with credit and debit cards.
The average credit card purchase amounts to 112% more than paying with cash. That’s more than double the price. For the average household, this comes out to $1200 per year just in interest! Imagine if you had the luxury of another $1200 spending money at the end of every year.
Over 13% of Americans have made a late payment on credit card bills in the past year. Hidden fees galore! In fact, in 2004, the credit card industry claimed $43 billion in card fees.
While a study showed that 9 out of 10 people supposedly don’t stress over credit card debt, half of those people don’t feel comfortable revealing just how much money they are in debt.
Not even counting mortgage debt, the average consumer debt per household is an alarming $14,800. It makes it hard to imagine that when our grandparents were kids, banks wouldn’t even allow the average person to borrow money! You can believe me when I say the only reason they changed this policy is because they realized how much money they could swindle, especially from senior citizens on fixed incomes.
And finally, personal savings in America has dropped from 8% to 2% in just twenty years.
The bottom line? Credit card companies are only getting better at keeping us in debt. So while we practice futile debt consolidation, they innovate new ways to keep us underwater.
I encourage everyone who reads this to make one more big attempt at getting out of consumer debt. Credit card debt can ruin your life, and it has ruined the lives of many others. If people as a whole become smarter about handling debt, we can fight off this abusive system and save the future of our children, who are being born into a society where credit cards are life support. Please visit this site and learn how you can get back to living a debt-free life.
Article Author :Shane_Taylor
|
