Bill benefits when expected were forced to rely on student loans or consumer debt.
Consumer debt has reached pre-recession levels, according to the Equifax National Credit Trends Report.
As a result, consumer debt loads increase even as the economy trudges toward recovery.
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Unlike card companies, credit unions aren't allowed to charge more than 18% on consumer debt.
So, the reduction in consumer debt is coming from dollars that would otherwise feed spending growth.
Although total consumer debt is up since 2007, credit card debt is actually down.
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Unless addressed, high interest credit card and consumer debt can derail attempts to reach retirement goals.
And many Britons carry a heavy burden of consumer debt as well as their mortgages.
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Carrying forward consumer debt is "spending the future you haven't earned yet", says Hall.
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Cramdown is already allowed for other forms of consumer debt, such as mortgages on holiday homes.
It cannot automatically be assumed that a debtor who has defaulted on a consumer debt is balance-sheet insolvent.
By roughly mid-2011, the level of consumer debt relative to income had declined by about 15 to 18 percent.
The arrival of Indians in Amherst is part of several big changes sweeping through America's sleepy consumer debt-collection industry.
Already, total consumer debt has risen to all-time highs in relation to income.
The image many people have of consumer debt is skewed by the idea that only wasteful spending can create debt.
Over the past six years, consumer debt has grown by a quarter and now stands at 130% of disposable income.
We're going to focus here on that last chunk of consumer debt and how it's been packaged and sold to investors.
In Britain, given the size of its finance industry, housing boom and consumer debt, the balance-sheet adjustment will, if anything, be greater.
Less demand for consumer goods will reduce prices and also consumer debt.
At the same time, consumer debt levels skyrocketed and the savings rate actually turned negative (U.S. households consumed more than their after-tax income).
Beata Caranci, Deputy Chief Economist at TD Bank, has noted that the ratio of consumer debt relative to income has also been cyclical.
Consumer debt can affect your ability to secure a mortgage, pass a credit check for a rental application, or get a job.
When you convert medical expenses into credit card debt, the expense becomes consumer debt and you are then subject to associated penalties and fees.
Debt is an evergreen topic in financial writing, whether it involves the perks and perils of individual consumer debt, corporate debt or national debt.
But because consumer debt and the current-account deficit have swelled further, it means that the eventual adjustment, when it comes, will be more painful.
Consumer debt in Brazil is of very short tenor at about 1.5 years and is paid back fast, which means balance sheet repairs happen quickly.
Of course, you might wish to temporarily reduce your 401K contribution in order to meet some other financial goal, such as paying down consumer debt.
With consumer debt at a record high and the housing market fragile, the downside risk to household consumption could be higher than the Bank is contemplating.
Minutes released this week of its meeting earlier this month show the Bank's monetary policy committee worrying about two risks from the rise in consumer debt.
"This becomes a capital challenge to us, " says Andrew Houser, chief executive of Freedom Debt Relief, which bills itself as the nation's largest negotiator of consumer debt.
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