American Household Debt Surpasses $17 Trillion for the First Time
Americans’ household debt surpassed a historic $17 trillion for the first time ever, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York reported (pdf) May 15.
Total consumer debt in the United States hit $17.5 trillion in the first quarter of 2023, an increase of $148 billion, or 0.9 percent from the fourth quarter of 2022. That debt load has spiked by $2.9 trillion since the end of 2019.
During the January-to-March period, the increases in debt were seen across all categories, with larger balances for mortgages, home equity lines of credit, auto loans, student loans, retail cards, and other consumer loans.
According to the New York Fed report, mortgage balances increased by $121 billion in the United States, bringing total mortgage debt to $12.04 trillion….