Jul 31 2015

The economy chugs along with consumers going into deep credit card debt: Credit card debt surges in top 25 US metro areas according to Equifax data.

Credit card debt is like crack for the American consumer.  A cheap alternative to pure spending cocaine but enough to keep you on the hamster wheel of consumption.  I recently discussed how credit card debt while remaining subdued since the Great Recession suddenly made a 180 degree turn.  Americans are spending money they don’t have […]

Jul 28 2015

You Cannot Afford a $250,000 Home with a $50,000 Household Income!

People are still surprised why new home sales remain anemic and new home building is simply not materializing.  The latest Census data shows that the typical new home sold for $281,000.  At the same time we also realize that your typical U.S. household is making about $50,000 per year.  The reason home sales remain weak […]

Jul 26 2015

Credit card debt makes up for lack of income growth: Credit card debt outstanding back up to $900 billion. Since 1980 household income up 300% while credit card debt up 1,760%.

The middle class started disappearing in earnest in the late 1970s.  Massive inflation started eating away at the standard of living for most Americans.  Yet much of this was covered up by access to debt.  Credit cards, creative mortgages, student loans, and auto debt all allowed Americans to continue acting as if prosperity was only […]

Jul 22 2015

The financial gouging of the American college student: Tuition is up 300 percent from 1990 and total outstanding student debt has grown by over 1 trillion dollars since 2000.

Inflation is such an insidious standard of living destroyer.  Little by little those dollars in your wallet get worth less and you suddenly find yourself needing to go into large levels of debt to purchase cornerstones of the American Dream.  Going to college has been the dream for many Americans after the G.I. Bill was […]

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