US Credit Card Debt Reaches $1 Trillion for the First Time Ever

Ah yes, credit cards. A necessary evil for many Americans. 💳👿 The last couple of years have been a real financial doozy, and a lot of us turned to our credit cards for purchases we'd usually just pay for in cash. 💵

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Whether you've racked up credit card debt from bougie purchases or weekly groceries, congratulations! You've contributed to the big ol' pot of United States debt stew! 🤑🥘 New data shows the country's credit card debt just passed the trillion-dollar mark for the first time in history.

Here’s Five Fast Facts on rising credit card debt in the US:

1. 🧘 Find Your Balance - In the second quarter of 2023 (April 1st through June 30th), total credit card balances rose by $45 billion to hit $1.03 trillion. That's an increase of over 4%.

2. 🆙 Hmm, Interesting - We all know the Fed's been increasing interest rates faster than we can keep up with. As a result, banks hiked theirs, as well. According to the latest data, the average credit card interest rate is 20.60%. The highest it's ever been was 20.69% this past June. 

3. 🎓 School Now, Pay Later - Sky-high credit card balances are about to get a bit more difficult to manage for those with outstanding student loan debt. The pause on repayments ends in October and experts are gearing up for more delinquency and defaults.

4. 🚗 In The Red - Credit card debt isn't the only kind of debt on the rise. Auto loans increased by $20 billion in the first and second quarter. Consumer loans and retail-specific credit card debt rose by $15 billion.

5. 👪 When You're Here, You're Family - These debt increases greatly impact overall household debt numbers. The current total household debt in the United States is at $17.06 trillion. It's increased by $2.9 trillion since the end of 2019 alone.

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🔥Bottom line: Pandemic struggles and inflation hit everyone in some way over the last several years. Job loss, layoffs, and rising prices made many people rely more heavily on credit cards to make ends meet. If you want a silver lining to all this doomy debt news, rumor has it that they might be dropping credit card late fees soon. Want to know how our country's credit rating impacts your paycheck? Check out this article. 

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Are you in over your head with credit card debt?

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