President Barack Obama recalled his struggles with student loan debt as he unveiled a plan Wednesday that could give millions of young people some relief on their payments.
Statistics & Research Publications
The following statistics and research topics below pertain to the behaviors and issues on consumer debt, consumer credit, credit scores, credit counseling, bankruptcy, savings and investment, workplace financial education, debt management, financial education, young adults, retirement, identity theft, and social policy.
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Since 2004, the percentage of college freshman with at least one credit card has risen from 15% to 69%.
Average credit card debt per household with credit card debt: $15,788
609.8 million credit cards held by U.S. consumers. (Source: "The Survey of Consumer Payment Choice," Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, January 2010)
Average number of credit cards held by cardholders: 3.5, as of yearend 2008 (Source: "The Survey of Consumer Payment Choice," Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, January 2010)
Average APR on new credit card offer: 14.35 percent (Source: CreditCards.com Weekly Rate Report, Aug. 25, 2010.)
Average APR on credit card with a balance on it: 14.48 percent, as of May, 2010 (Source: Federal Reserve's G.19 report on consumer credit, August 2010)
Total U.S. revolving debt (98 percent of which is made up of credit card debt): $852.6 billion, as of March 2010 (Source: Federal Reserve's G.19 report on consumer credit, March 2010)
Total U.S. consumer debt: $2.42 trillion, as of June 2010 (Source: Federal Reserve's G.19 report on consumer credit, August 2010)
U.S. credit card 60-day delinquency rate: 4.27 percent. (Source: Fitch Ratings, April 2010)
U.S. credit card default rate: 13.01 percent. (Source: Fitch Ratings, April 2010)
U.S. Credit card 60-day delinquency rate: 4.27 percent (Source: Fitch Ratings, April 2010)
Total bankruptcy filings in 2009 reached 1.4 million in 2009, up from 1.09 million in 2008. The vast majority were personal bankruptcies -- Chapter 7 and Chapter 13. Business bankruptcies made up 6 percent of all filings. (Source: AACER, the American Bankruptcy Institute, January 2010)
Nevada surpassed Tennessee atop the listing of bankruptcies per capita, with more than 11 bankruptcies filed for every 1,000 residents. Tennessee and Georgia took the second and third slots behind the Silver State. Compared to 2009 third-quarter data, the biggest mover was Arizona, which rose six spots from No. 21 to No. 15. At the other end of the scale is Alaska, which had only 1.4 bankruptcies per capita, meaning the average Nevadan was eight times more likely to file bankruptcy than the average Alaskan. (Source: AACER, the American Bankruptcy Institute, January 2010)
Young Americans now have the second highest rate of bankruptcy, just after those aged 35 to 44. The rate among 25- to 34-year-olds increased between 1991 and 2001, indicating that this generation is more likely to file bankruptcy as young adults than were young boomers at the same age. (Source: "Generation Broke: Growth of Debt Among Young Americans")
1. American Express
2. Discover
3. US Bank
4. Wells Fargo
5. Chase
6. Barclaycard
7. Bank of America
8. Capital One
9. Citi
10. HSBC
(Source: J.D. Power and Associates 2010)
Consumer Debt
In 2004, of those with credit cards, 84 percent of African-American households carried credit card debt compared with 54 percent of white households. (Source: Demos.org, "Borrowing To Make Ends Meet," November 2007)
Over 90 percent of African-American families earning between $10,000 and $24,999 had credit card debt. (Source: Demos.org study, November 2007)
42 percent of Hispanics don't like the idea of being in debt. (Source: Experian Consumer Research study, November 2008)
Undergraduates are carrying record-high credit card balances. The average (mean) balance grew to $3,173, the highest in the years the study has been conducted. Median debt grew from 2004’s $946 to $1,645. Twenty-one percent of undergraduates had balances of between $3,000 and $7,000, also up from the last study. (Source: Sallie Mae, "How Undergraduate Students Use Credit Cards," April 2009)
In spring of 2008, only 15 percent of freshmen had a zero balance, down dramatically from 69 percent in the fall of 2004. The median debt freshmen carried was $939, nearly triple the $373 in 2004. (Source: Sallie Mae, "How Undergraduate Students Use Credit Cards," April 2009)
Seniors graduated with an average credit card debt of more than $4,100, up from $2,900 almost four years ago. Close to one-fifth of seniors carried balances greater than $7,000. (Source: Sallie Mae, "How Undergraduate Students Use Credit Cards," April 2009)
The average college graduate has nearly $20,000 in debt; average credit card debt has increased 47 percent between 1989 and 2004 for 25-to 34-year-olds and 11 percent for 18- to 24-year-olds. Nearly one in five 18- to 24-year-olds is in "debt hardship," up from 12 percent in 1989. (Source: Demos.org, "The Economic State of Young America," May 2008)
Discussing credit card debt is highly taboo. The topics at the top of the list of things that people say they are very or somewhat unlikely to talk openly about with someone they just met were: The amount of credit card debt (81 percent); details of your love life (81 percent); your salary (77 percent); the amount you pay for your monthly mortgage or rent (72 percent); your health problems (62 percent); your weight (50 percent). (Source: CreditCards.com research, January 2009)
Interest Rates
36 percent of respondents said they didn't know the interest rate on the card they use most often. (Source: FINRA Investor Education Foundation, "Financial Capability in the United States," December 2009)
The national average default rate as January 2010 stood at 27.88 percent and the mean default rate is 28.99 percent. (Source: CreditCards.com survey, January 2010)
Slightly more than half of Americans -- 51 percent -- said that in the past 12 months, they carried over a balance and was charged interest on a credit card. (Source: "Financial Capability in the United States," FINRA Investor Education Foundation, December 2009)
93 percent of cards allowed the issuer to raise any interest rate at any time by changing the account agreement. (Source: Pew Safe Credit Cards Project, March 2009)
Only eight percent of cards with penalty rate conditions offered to restore the original rate terms when payments are made on-time, usually after 12 months. (Source: Pew Safe Credit Cards Project, March 2009)
72 percent of cards included offers of low promotional rates which issuers could revoke after a single late payment. (Source: Pew Safe Credit Cards Project, March 2009)
Among 39 credit cards Consumer Action looked at from 22 financial institutions, the average interest rate for purchases was 12.83 percent. That's a drop of more half a point from the 2008 survey results. Interest rates on purchases ranged from 4.25 percent to 22.99 percent, with the fixed rate credit cards averaging an interest rate of 10.03 percent and the variable rate credit cards averaging 13.20 percent. (Source: Consumer Action credit card survey, July 2009)
Average APR on new credit card offer: 14.10 percent (Source: CreditCards.com Weekly Rate Report, May 2010.)
Average APR on credit card with a balance on it: 14.67 percent, as of February, 2010 (Source: Federal Reserve's G.19 report on consumer credit, May 2010)
Only 38 percent of survey respondents have obtained a copy of their credit report, and even fewer (36 percent) have checked their credit score in the past 12 months. (Source: "Financial Capability in the United States," FINRA Investor Education Foundation, December 2009)
More than half -- 52 percent -- of those who have checked their credit score in the past 12 months reported having credit scores above 720. By contrast, only 17 percent of those who have checked their credit score had credit scores below 620. (Source: "Financial Capability in the United States," FINRA Investor Education Foundation, December 2009)
From Q3 2008 to Q1 2009, the average TransUnion credit score fell 6 points to 651, the credit bureau says. Scores fell even further in the some economically challenged states: California fell 10 points and Arizona, 11. (Source: USAToday.com, April 2009)
The U.S. average VantageScore® is 769. The average score rises to 837 when looking solely at the over-60 population. (Source: Experian marketing insight snapshot, March 2009)
Nearly two-thirds of American adults (64 percent) -- or 144 million people -- have not ordered a copy of their credit report in the past year; this grows to nearly three-quarters (72 percent) among Hispanic Americans. (Source: National Foundation for Credit Counseling, 2009 Financial Literacy Survey, April 2009)
More than one-third of American adults (37 percent) admit that they do not know their credit score. (Source: National Foundation for Credit Counseling, 2009 Financial Literacy Survey, April 2009)
Only 2 percent of undergraduates had no credit history. (Source: Sallie Mae, "How Undergraduate Students Use Credit Cards," April 2009)
On average, today's consumer has a total of 13 credit obligations on record at a credit bureau. These include credit cards (such as department store charge cards, gas cards, and bank cards) and installment loans (auto loans, mortgage loans, student loans, etc.). Not included are savings and checking accounts (typically not reported to a credit bureau). Of these 13 credit obligations, nine are likely to be credit cards and four are likely to be installment loans. (Source: myfico.com)
The average consumer's oldest obligation is 14 years old, indicating that he or she has been managing credit for some time. In fact, one out of four consumers had credit histories of 20 years or longer. Only one in 20 consumers had credit histories shorter than two years. (Source: myfico.com)
The average consumer has had only one credit inquiry on his or her accounts within the past year. Fewer than 6 percent had four or more inquiries resulting from a search for new credit. (Source: myfico.com)
The average person under the age of 35 got both their first credit card and their first debit card when they were about 21 years old. (Source: "The Survey of Consumer Payment Choice," Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, January 2010)
41 percent of cardholders from the ages of 18 to 29 made only the minimum required payment on a credit card in some of the past 12 months. (Source: FINRA Investor Education Foundation, "Financial Capability in the United States," December 2009)
Fifty-one percent of teens believe it's easier to buy things with a credit card than cash. (Teens & Money survey conducted by Charles Schwab & Co., Inc., 2007)
Just 51 percent of Americans aged 18 to 24 indicated they had used a credit card in the month preceding the September 2008 survey. 71 percent of that age group said that they had used a debit card in the same period. (Source: Javelin, "Credit Card Spending Declines" study, March 2009)
Only 2 percent of undergraduates had no credit history. (Source: Sallie Mae, "How Undergraduate Students Use Credit Cards," April 2009)
Eighty-four percent of the student population overall have credit cards, an increase of approximately 11 percent since the fall of 2004. (Source: Sallie Mae, "How Undergraduate Students Use Credit Cards," April 2009)
Undergraduates are carrying record-high credit card balances. The average (mean) balance grew to $3,173, the highest in the years the study has been conducted. Median debt grew from 2004’s $946 to $1,645. Twenty-one percent of undergraduates had balances of between $3,000 and $7,000, also up from the last study. (Source: Sallie Mae, "How Undergraduate Students Use Credit Cards," April 2009)
Half of college undergraduates had four or more credit cards in 2008. That's up from 43 percent in 2004 and just 32 percent in 2000. (Source: Sallie Mae, "How Undergraduate Students Use Credit Cards," April 2009)
Since 2004, students who arrived on campus as freshmen with a credit card already in-hand have increased from 23 percent to 39 percent. (Source: Sallie Mae, "How Undergraduate Students Use Credit Cards," April 2009)
In spring of 2008, only 15 percent of freshmen had a zero balance, down dramatically from 69 percent in the fall of 2004. The median debt freshmen carried was $939, nearly triple the $373 in 2004. (Source: Sallie Mae, "How Undergraduate Students Use Credit Cards," April 2009)
Seniors graduated with an average credit card debt of more than $4,100, up from $2,900 almost four years ago. Close to one-fifth of seniors carried balances greater than $7,000. (Source: Sallie Mae, "How Undergraduate Students Use Credit Cards," April 2009)
Nine in 10 undergraduates reported paying for direct education expenses with credit cards—and the average amount they charged more than doubled since the last study. (Source: Sallie Mae, "How Undergraduate Students Use Credit Cards," April 2009)
Ninety-two percent of undergraduate credit cardholders charged textbooks, school supplies, or other direct education expenses, up from 85 percent when the study was last conducted, in 2004. (Source: Sallie Mae, "How Undergraduate Students Use Credit Cards," April 2009)
Nearly one-third (30 percent) put tuition on their credit card, an increase from 24 percent in the previous study. (Source: Sallie Mae, "How Undergraduate Students Use Credit Cards," April 2009)
Students who used credit cards to pay for direct education expenses estimated charging $2,200, more than double 2004’s average of $942. (Source: Sallie Mae, "How Undergraduate Students Use Credit Cards," April 2009)
Sixty percent of undergrads experienced surprise at how high their balance had reached, and 40 percent said they have charged items knowing they didn’t have the money to pay the bill. (Source: Sallie Mae, "How Undergraduate Students Use Credit Cards," April 2009)
Only 17 percent said they regularly paid off all cards each month, and another 1 percent had parents, a spouse, or other family members paying the bill. The remaining 82 percent carried balances and thus incurred finance charges each month. (Source: Sallie Mae, "How Undergraduate Students Use Credit Cards," April 2009)
Two-thirds of survey respondents said they had frequently or sometimes discussed credit card use with their parents. The remaining one-third who had never or only rarely discussed credit cards with parents were more likely to pay for tuition with a credit card and were more likely to be surprised at their credit card balance when they received the invoice. (Source: Sallie Mae, "How Undergraduate Students Use Credit Cards," April 2009)
Eighty-four percent of undergraduates indicated they needed more education on financial management topics. In fact, 64 percent would have liked to receive information in high school and 40 percent as college freshmen. (Source: Sallie Mae, "How Undergraduate Students Use Credit Cards," April 2009)
One-fourth of the students surveyed in US PIRG's 2008 Campus Credit Card Trap report said that they have paid a late fee, and 15 percent have paid an "over the limit" fee. (Source: U.S. PIRG, "Campus Credit Card Trap")
74 percent of monthly college spending is with cash and debit cards. Only 7 percent is with credit cards. (Source: Student Monitor annual financial services survey of current college students, 2008)
The average college graduate has nearly $20,000 in debt; average credit card debt has increased 47 percent between 1989 and 2004 for 25-to 34-year-olds and 11 percent for 18- to 24-year-olds. Nearly one in five 18- to 24-year-olds is in "debt hardship," up from 12 percent in 1989. (Source: Demos.org, "The Economic State of Young America," May 2008)
According to the Identity Theft Report Generation Y (ages 19 to 30) have a higher risk for identity theft because of their online presence and the use of social networking sites.
The number of U.S. identity fraud victims rose 12 percent to 11.1 million adults last year, the highest level since the survey began in 2003. (Source: Javelin Strategy & Research, "Identity Fraud Survey Report," February 2010)
The average fraud resolution time dropped 30 percent to 21 hours. (Source: Javelin Strategy & Research, "Identity Fraud Survey Report," February 2010)
Nearly half of fraud victims now file police reports, resulting in double the reported arrests, triple the prosecutions and double the percentage of convictions in 2009. (Source: Javelin Strategy & Research, "Identity Fraud Survey Report," February 2010)
The number of U.S. identity fraud victims increased 22 percent in 2008 to 9.9 million adults. However, the total annual fraud amount jumped just 7 percent to $48 billion. The report said this is because "consumers and businesses are detecting and resolving fraud more quickly." (Source: Javelin Strategy & Research, February 2009 study.)
Women were 26 percent more likely to be victims of identity fraud than men in 2008. (Source: Javelin Strategy & Research, February 2009 study.)
71 percent of fraud incidents "began occurring in less than one week from when the data was first stolen, up from 33 percent in 2005." (Source: Javelin Strategy & Research, February 2009 study.)
"Lost or stolen wallets, checkbooks and credit and debit cards" made up 43 percent of all ID theft incidents in which the "method of access" was known. (Source: Javelin Strategy & Research, February 2009 study.)
Credit and debit card fraud is the No. 1 fear of Americans in the midst of the global financial crisis. Concern about fraud supersedes that of terrorism, computer and health viruses and personal safety. (Source: Unisys Security Index: United States, March 2009)
Arizona leads the nation in identity theft complaints per 100,000 people. In 2008, the state had 149 complaints about ID theft per 100,000 people. California (139.1), Florida (133.3), Texas (130.3) and Nevada (126.0) rounded out the top five. (Source: Federal Trade Commission, February 2009 survey)
South Dakota has the fewest identity theft complaints per 100,000 people in the nation. In 2008, the state had 33.8 complaints about ID theft per 100,000 people. North Dakota (35.7), Iowa (44.9), Montana (46.5) and Wyoming (46.9) rounded out the bottom five. (Source: Federal Trade Commission, February 2009 survey)
Brownsville-Harlingen, Texas, is the metropolitan area with the largest number of ID theft complaints per 100,000 people. In 2008, the area had 366.8 complaints per 100,000 people. Napa, Calif., was second with 351.3. (Source: Federal Trade Commission, February 2009 survey)
