Best of Dennis – Don’t get caught in the debt trap!

Best of Dennis – Don’t get caught in the debt trap!

Guest Post by Dennis Miller at Miller On The Money

Best of Dennis…

Dennis is on a short break spending time with his family. He will be back writing after Thanksgiving, but in the meantime, here’s an article worthy of a re-read in today’s economy. This article was originally posted on June 22, 2017.

Hardly a day goes by without an article blaring about record levels of debt and warning of a collapse. Irresponsible borrowing can adversely affect everyone, including those who lived within their means.

Reuters reports, “Americans’ debt back at record high after nearly a decade”:

“Americans’ debt level reached a record high this year, surpassing the peak touched just as the worst of the recession was taking hold in 2008, …households …now lean …more on auto and student loans.”

Bloomberg weighs in on student loans, “Student debt in America has hit a new record”:

“Total U.S. student debt hit a record $1.31 trillion last year, the 18th consecutive year Americans’ education debt rose, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

…Close to one-quarter of student debtors whose bills have come due are either in default or at least 90 days late on their required monthly payments… The federal government owns or guarantees more than 90 percent of all student debt.”

Fed economists raised concern over the 11% of student loan debt that was “seriously delinquent”, yet a Fed spokesman tells us not to worry:

“This record debt level is neither a reason to celebrate nor a cause for alarm,” Donghoon Lee, a research officer at the New York Fed, said in the report.

The federal government continues to borrow. CNN Money reports, “Mnuchin to Congress: “Raise the Debt Ceiling before you go home.”

“The Treasury Department’s power to borrow money expired on March 16. Although it won’t run out of cash until sometime this fall, any delay could risk hurting the government’s credit rating and sending markets into turmoil.”

Ian Smith at FedSmith.com reports:

“The TSP recently announced that the government has begun borrowing from the G Fund to avoid running up against the debt ceiling limit.

The national debt is now approaching $20 trillion. …Just over $61,000 per citizen and almost $166,000 per taxpayer.”

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