Consumers are increasingly struggling to pay their credit card bills, raising concerns about severe delinquencies spiraling and sapping consumer spending.
I’m 35. We took out a refi and paid off our credit card debts in 2019, and we were doing financially great for probably the first time in our adult lives. In the course of the last year, we’ve nearly maxed out most of our credit cards on living expenses. It’s not only that the cost of living jumped up, but that our wages haven’t gone up with it and our combined student loan load is like $1000/mo. There’s also the creeping understanding that we’re one big unexpected expense from disaster. I was really looking forward to taking the kids on their first real trip or something, but I guess we’re just going to stay here and play Vidya until they’re adults. But hey, glad to hear that the economy’s doing great.
Well, there’s sucking at handling credit cards at 11% interest, and there’s sucking at handling credit cards at 28% interest.
Not that I feel bad about it because I reached adulthood and learned my lesson with the 2007 recession, but young people are experiencing the double whammy of being the ‘number go up’ generation, with their parents and education completely failing to prepare them for number go down.
Now the only numbers that go up are cost of living and interest rates.
I’ve had credit card for 2 decades and don’t think I’ve ever seen less than 20% interest, and I’ve got good credit. Though, I’ve also never really cared since I’ve never paid interest.
I’ve got the good fortune to have an >800 credit score, and even the offers I’ve seen from “status symbol” card issuers have had bonkers-high interest even when the Fed was holding the prime rate close to zero. The lowest I’ve ever seen was still around 15%, and even at that “low” rate you’d have to be truly desperate to carry a balance. Even unsecured personal loans tend to carry interest rates at half of what a credit card offers.
Had a CC with 7.99% flat rate interest back when variable wasn’t the only option. This was 10 years ago. Bank dropped it the first time we had no balance on it and didn’t notice. Bastards.
My rate hovers at low of 790s to high of anywhere in the 800s and I see 15% cards at the low. Just god awful these days.
Young people have always sucked at handling credit cards. This isn’t new.
I’m 35. We took out a refi and paid off our credit card debts in 2019, and we were doing financially great for probably the first time in our adult lives. In the course of the last year, we’ve nearly maxed out most of our credit cards on living expenses. It’s not only that the cost of living jumped up, but that our wages haven’t gone up with it and our combined student loan load is like $1000/mo. There’s also the creeping understanding that we’re one big unexpected expense from disaster. I was really looking forward to taking the kids on their first real trip or something, but I guess we’re just going to stay here and play Vidya until they’re adults. But hey, glad to hear that the economy’s doing great.
Well, there’s sucking at handling credit cards at 11% interest, and there’s sucking at handling credit cards at 28% interest.
Not that I feel bad about it because I reached adulthood and learned my lesson with the 2007 recession, but young people are experiencing the double whammy of being the ‘number go up’ generation, with their parents and education completely failing to prepare them for number go down.
Now the only numbers that go up are cost of living and interest rates.
I’ve had credit card for 2 decades and don’t think I’ve ever seen less than 20% interest, and I’ve got good credit. Though, I’ve also never really cared since I’ve never paid interest.
I’ve got the good fortune to have an >800 credit score, and even the offers I’ve seen from “status symbol” card issuers have had bonkers-high interest even when the Fed was holding the prime rate close to zero. The lowest I’ve ever seen was still around 15%, and even at that “low” rate you’d have to be truly desperate to carry a balance. Even unsecured personal loans tend to carry interest rates at half of what a credit card offers.
Sounds like you pick bad banks. Credit unions are generally better
You’d be wrong since my primary institution is a federal credit union and has been my entire adult life.
Maybe try a different one
Why?
Had a CC with 7.99% flat rate interest back when variable wasn’t the only option. This was 10 years ago. Bank dropped it the first time we had no balance on it and didn’t notice. Bastards.
My rate hovers at low of 790s to high of anywhere in the 800s and I see 15% cards at the low. Just god awful these days.