Average Credit Card Debt Per Family

Does anyone know what the average debt, on credit cards are per family? Do you think that the interest rates are too inflated, making it harder to pay them off?

Of course CC companies and banks and mortgage companies make it too easy to get credit. That's how the make money! And, the worse your credit, the more money they make!

So, what do you do about it? Educate yourself! That's the only way. There are few schools and colleges that educate people on personal finance, so it's up to YOU to educate yourself!

How do you do that? Go to www.GoldenRocFinacial.com or Amazon.com and get "Persona Finance 101 - A Beginner's Guide." That book is used by Brigham-Young University and charter schools to teach young adults -- 13 - 28 years old (and parents of young adults) the basics or personal finance and a bit about investing. In addition, the book covers the rules for credit and bank accounts, how to avoid getting into trouble with debt, and what to do if/when you get into trouble with credit.

Educate yourself, and think outside the box that society and advertisers would like you in...

2007-04-30 15:26:43 by golfnuttoday

www.cpa-financial-debt-strateg y.com - If you're in debt, you're not alone. According to the Federal Reserve, Americans are in $1.98 ...

I travel alot for business and my company shut down two months ago therefore i am job less. My wife handles all of the bills pays such as house payment and such. At work i did manage to have them with hold 200 dollars every two weeks to put in a savings account. Over the years that is at 37k, I saving it for emergencies. When I lost my job I went over bills with my wife, with her salary and my unemployement we will be just fine. Now last week she came to me and told me she is worried some of the bills will not get paid I asked why I need to see this. She then put her head down and said there is something i should tell you I have 600 in cc payments, my face turned white. So then she brought me the statements all had APR averaging 15%. Here is the thing why she took on that much debt, her brother Charles lost his job and his wife just got out of rehab. They have 2 girls that are our god children. They live 3 hours away they lost there home/car too this year and where homeless. Well my wife got them a hotel to live in pd it all on credit at 49 per night 2 months 3400, food clothing another 3k and she bought them a car 4k, plus money for court fees to get him looking for work. so all and all 11k went to help her brother and family out. Well he and his wife where suppose to get jobs and start paying my wife back. My wife went down to where the hotel was they where gone, they took the hotels TV, bedding, pillows ect so my wife was stuck with another 1k in damages. She found out last week that they were headed to Phoniex area, that is well over 2,000 miles away. My wife dose not think that she will see them again and get her money back. My wife is begging me to find away to help her pay this down. I am so frustrated right now, If she would of asked me I could of told her that her brother Charles and sis in law Bridget would of done that. They both where, maybe still are Meth-Users thats what they do use people.

Well this is what you been saving the money for....emergencies. She obviously knew that you would not have approved of her behavior......that's only part of the reason here for the secrecy.
You have work to hard, and long...and with extremely good diligence,and concern for your future. These are not your debts....they are hers.....she created them, let her live with them....your concern is for your safe and secure life style....and her concern was for someone Else's........heck she didn't even consider herself in the equation. What you need to do here....is get a "dissolution of liability" do no more credit agreements with your wife as co-signer...if any of the credit cards are in your name.....dispute all charges with your card company.....explain to her what your intention where for saving the money you have.....and assure her that it not your intention to piss-off your savings on things created by her ignorance.....a car breaks down...ok............a tornado trashes the roof......ok.......a car is damaged in a auto accident.......ok; but this doesn't qualify. Now is the time for the man to step up to the plate, the fiscal and conservative, responsible one in the marriage, has to prevail here.

2009-08-02 09:57:24 by Johnny

Hello,

I have taken over sole responsibility for managing our finances. I have some very stupid questions.

1. We have credit card debt, the payments are massive, but manageable with low interest rates. Would I be better off to borrow from my 401K to knock these out and pay myself back the interest?

2. Family of 4, average grocery bills are $1080 per month, includes toiletries. Seems high, what does the average family of 4 typically spend?

no.. NEVER borrow from a 401K or any other retirement account to do this. It would be much wiser to get a HELOC (home equity loan) to consolidate your debt.

You groceries are a bit high--- stay AWAY from the frozen food aisle... trust me you'll save a bloody FORTUNE.

If you dont get a HELOC, pay your Highest interest rates balance first. This slows your rate of debt accumulation faster...

2008-07-12 18:04:41 by Joe P

My husband and I are a little over $30,000 in credit card debt, we owe $6,000 to the bank for a line of credit we took out, we borrowed $2,500 from a family member to make the bills one month, we have a mortgage of $875 per month, and 2 vehicle payments for a total of $1,100 per month. Now all of this doesn't include utilities we pay just to live month to month. To top it all off, we are going through a 3 year audit, where we are discovering that my mother in law (she's always done our taxes) didn't know what she was doing and we are going to have to pay taxes on an average of $30,000 in extra income for each of those three years, plus penalties, plus interest. Should we file for bankruptcy? What are the benefits? What are the cons, besides no credit for 10 years? Has anyone else been in this type of scenario? I need advice!
We have three kids. I've been a stay at home mom for 2 years. I can go back to work and am more than willing, but then we have to figure in daycare as well. My husband works construction and has not worked for the past 4 months. The season is coming around, but with all this debt...

Any creditors will work with you as long as they understand that you are working to pay them back. Negotiate with them and let them know realistically how much per month you could pay them and request to them to help you take the interest rate down. They will work with you as long as you are there. You can email me and I can share more experiences that my family has went through and share with you what is helping us on our to financial freedom. I know its tough but be strong and have faith. email or message me so I can send you some helpful tips as well.

2009-03-16 16:23:01 by Cheryl B

I have a job in commission sales that averages around $4000 per month. This is usually around $5000 6 months of the year and $3000 the other six. During the recession I moved out of my house and into another town in order to be closer to family for child care. I still own the house and have a tenant living there currently. I can't afford to have even one month of not receiving payment and for me to still pay rent where I am staying. I have no savings. I also now have around $21000 in credit card debt between 3 seperate cards, which adds up to around a $500 minimum payment at high rates. One of these cards I have already closed in an agreement to lower the rate 8 points. I have $17000 in student loan debt that is around 3% and has payments equalling around $250. I have a $330 per month car payment on a car that is $6000 upside down. My mortgage is $950 and my rent on the house I am renting is $675. Then there are the utility bills and my job requires a cell phone. I am living at the point where I just went an entire week without being able to spend $5 because I had 4.92 in the bank. My tenants lease is up at the end of december and he may stay, but probably not for more than 4 months. He is not really the type that would want to help me out if I went to sell my house either. I currently work 1.5 hours away from my previous home. I am lost and have no idea what I can do and there seems to be no end in sight, especially now that we have reached the slow point of the year. What are my options? My wife cannot get a job that pays more than a net outgo of around $100 every two weeks after paying her expenses and the fact that the family is no longer available for free childcare. My job is promising in that I am looking like I may get a promotion in a few years that would nearly double my pay. HELP!
I work about 55 hours a week right now. We tried to do all we could to keep ourselves from losing it all. A short sale may work for our house, and that would help out as far as not being tied down or so dependent on my tenant paying his rent, but would not help financially per month. We live in this new town and she may be able to watch kids, but we dont have any "good leads" (it's obvious I am in sales) on any kids to watch. Penny pinching has begun if you look at my week without spending money. I could move back into my house and get another job, but it is hard to just go out and find a job making $50,000 a year in Kentucky and I think that I have a great future where I am at, which would help out long term. I have considered moving back and driving, but that would just add more expense and wear and tear on my car and me. I try to stay positive about things but this lack of money is also affecting my relationship as my wife is very depressed with how our lives have seemed to turn out

I think you need to rethink the idea of your wife working. Maybe she could get a job nights/weekends while you can provide free child care.

I don't think bankruptcy will help a whole lot. Your student loans will not be forgiven in bankruptcy, and the car (which I assume you need) will require you to reaffirm that debt and payment to keep it. Same with the house. All bankruptcy will get rid of is your credit card debt, and it is 10 years of hard damage to get rid of a $500 a month obligation.

here are some ideas to consider:

You could walk away from the house and let it go to foreclosure. That's a harsh thing to do, but one option to consider, especially as you already have a rental. Or put it on the market now and see if you could sell it as a short sale.

You could give up your rental house and move to something cheaper.

You could work a second weekend job for more income.

You could try to balance transfer your credit cards to a lower rate card (the Pentagon Federal Credit Union is offering a 4.99% balance transfer Visa for up to 24 months).

If your wife is staying home to care for the children, she could open up an inhome day care center and care for other children for cash.

See if you can sell your car for a cheap POS and roll the underwater $6,000 into a different loan.

Just stop paying the credit cards for a while until you catch your breath. The fees will be killer over the long run, but it is an option.

Basically, I think you need to write up a family budget and figure out wwhat can be scraped, scrimped and pinched to give you some more breathing room in your budget. Leave nothing unquestioned. If you wife has a car, sell it and replace it with the cheapest thing that will safely get her around, or look into the ZipCar service. If you normally get an income tax refund, change your withholding so you get more take home pay now. If you have cable TV, cancel it and let the kids watch DVDs or regular TV.

If you google the term "frugal living" you can get hundreds of ideas to get your budget in line..

2009-09-24 10:59:42 by Tyler