US Household Debt Surpasses 2008 High

#1

Post by kcorbitt » Wed, May 17, 2017, 10:38 PM UTC

US Household Debt Surpasses 2008 High
nytimes.com

Re: US Household Debt Surpasses 2008 High

#2

Post by Retric » Wed, May 17, 2017, 10:55 PM UTC

In nominal terms ignoring the ~15% inflation.

PS: Inflation only shows up once as "The household debt figures are not adjusted for inflation" but that still renders the headline meaningless.

Re: US Household Debt Surpasses 2008 High

#3

Post by mdorazio » Wed, May 17, 2017, 10:58 PM UTC

For those who just read the title, the cause of this new high is ballooning student debt, not mortgages. Housing debt is still mostly declining.

Re: US Household Debt Surpasses 2008 High

#4

Post by tantalor » Wed, May 17, 2017, 10:58 PM UTC

Retric wrote: post #2

In nominal terms ignoring the ~15% inflation. PS: Inflation only shows up once as "The household debt figures are not adjusted for inflation" but that still renders the headline meaningless.

Also, "per capita"?

Re: US Household Debt Surpasses 2008 High

#5

Post by encoderer » Wed, May 17, 2017, 10:59 PM UTC

tantalor wrote: post #4

Retric wrote: post #2

In nominal terms ignoring the ~15% inflation. PS: Inflation only shows up once as "The household debt figures are not adjusted for inflation" but that still renders the headline meaningless.

Also, "per capita"?

Also no mention of "share of GDP".

Basically, the article is rubbish.

Re: US Household Debt Surpasses 2008 High

#6

Post by tacct142 » Wed, May 17, 2017, 11:01 PM UTC

Excellent. Which group of poor decision makers will I get to bail out soon (oh, students, superb!) while reading my daily "The Death of the Middle Class" article?

Re: US Household Debt Surpasses 2008 High

#7

Post by tsunamifury » Wed, May 17, 2017, 11:01 PM UTC

This appears to be an even worse situation than 2008 because housing debt has gone down not because homes are cheaper, but that people can't buy homes. And other forms of debt with far smaller effect on net-wealth and GDP as well far harsher discharge terms are eating up the difference. This makes for the same (or more) debt load in an even riskier, more individually onerous, combination.

Re: US Household Debt Surpasses 2008 High

#8

Post by [deleted] » Wed, May 17, 2017, 11:02 PM UTC

[deleted]

Re: US Household Debt Surpasses 2008 High

#9

Post by NTDF9 » Wed, May 17, 2017, 11:03 PM UTC

encoderer wrote: post #5

tantalor wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Also, "per capita"?

Also no mention of "share of GDP". Basically, the article is rubbish.

Share of GDP seems important. Why is this rubbish?

Re: US Household Debt Surpasses 2008 High

#10

Post by manacit » Wed, May 17, 2017, 11:05 PM UTC

I don't know if it's a "bubble" (I am not qualified to say that), but I can't imagine that the current trend with student loans will continue. Looking at the numbers for someone entering college in 2017, it feels nearly predatory what a good portion of private and out of state colleges are charging. Even with financial aid, $30-40k a year for 4-5 years is insane.

I was fortunate enough to have parents who made saving for my college a priority, but watching them go through the same dance with my younger brother makes me wonder how most people get it done.

There's a huge value in going to higher education, but the ever increasing cost and amount of debt people are taking on is setting everyone but the top 10% of graduates up for a life of being in debt, which is kind of horrifying. Especially since they are debts that are impossible to shed through bankruptcy.