Why do Americans pretend they're not broke when most Americans are in debt?
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I had $17k in the 401k when I was laid off from my last job - it had been twice that but there was that big collapse. Raised a lot of kids and couldn't put much away. Always something but never much. That was in my 40s.
I am dug out now, mostly, in my 50s, not to the point I think I'll retire but oh my God when I look at the difference between them and now it's crazy, there is so much more.
I just want to say, don't give up hope. I would never have dreamed that this would turn around and it did. And the kids grew up too.
Oh, sorry, I haven't given up hope. It was sort of said with...a laugh. I do have some investments I've made as of late that are looking like they could pay off big...we'll see. Either way, I still sleep okay at night and I have a roof over my head so I can't complain.
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MSMs propaganda, decades of it, so you wont realize that you are "actually poor" because of the top .05% owners. im simplifying, buts its through various mechanisms, like advertisements, news, politicians.
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No idea who down voted you but holy shit, some people om here resent the idea of having to educate themselves.
Hopefully threat actors but JFC
Do we have a personal finance community on fedi?!
I am sure there is enough middle age cucks here to provide proper info for specific questions.
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My savings are invested in the stock market, and the returns I get from that are higher than the interest on my mortgage. If I liquidated my investments to pay off the house, the savings from not paying mortgage interest would still be less than what I’d make from the market over the same period. I’d rather use the profits from my investments to cover the mortgage interest - that way I still have money left over. If I did the opposite, I’d lose that extra money.
Your personal financial situation is not really representative of the financial situation of Americans in general though.
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Most americans aren't in debt.
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Most americans aren't in debt.
wrote last edited by [email protected]Most americans aren’t in debt.
American household debt is on a relentless upward trajectory. It was at a record $18.20 trillion by 2025, up $4.6 trillion since 2019. With 90% of Americans having some form of debt
https://www.debt.org/faqs/americans-in-debt/demographics/
IDK about US education and math but "most" in the rest of the world means more than 50%.
10% = not good -
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It's just temporary trust me.
Tonight is the night, I'm going to sleep and have
the American Dream 
️ 
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I mean, it depends on what you mean by that. Anyone who has a credit card is going to have debt, just by virtue of needing to pay the bill.
But if you mean "most Americans have a negative net worth" --- taking into account assets and debts --- most Americans have a positive net worth.
https://www.kiplinger.com/retirement/average-net-worth-by-age-how-do-you-measure-up
The median net worth of all Americans in 2022 was $192,900.
Credit cards don't have to mean debt if you pay them off before the intrest applies. That's how you use them responsibly. Many don't.
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Debt is not a broke person thing. Most people you'd consider to be well off have debt.
Americans dont feel broke because they have extremely strong purchasing power.
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My savings are invested in the stock market, and the returns I get from that are higher than the interest on my mortgage. If I liquidated my investments to pay off the house, the savings from not paying mortgage interest would still be less than what I’d make from the market over the same period. I’d rather use the profits from my investments to cover the mortgage interest - that way I still have money left over. If I did the opposite, I’d lose that extra money.
What would happen if stock market dives?
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Your personal financial situation is not really representative of the financial situation of Americans in general though.
No, even regular savings accounts have ~4% interest, so it makes sense for anyone who got a mortgage more than 2-3 years ago when the rates went up. Any extra money shouldn't be going to pay down old debt faster, it should be in savings or other high yield accounts.
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What would happen if stock market dives?
The value of my portfolio dips too, but I don’t actually lose anything unless I sell. I just hold and wait for prices to recover - as they always have so far. In fact, when the market drops I buy even more, because the same money gets me more shares. People don’t lose their savings because of a crash; they lose them because they panic and sell for less than they paid.
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I mean, I have a hot tub. Granted, it been sitting on its side for about 5 years, the critters have claimed it as their own and now live inside, and the siding is rotted to hell, but it's there.
Sounds to me like the critters are the Jones's now!
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Credit cards don't have to mean debt if you pay them off before the intrest applies. That's how you use them responsibly. Many don't.
wrote last edited by [email protected]It's debt regardless of whether or not one pays interest. Debt isn't linked to interest. Just means that you have an obligation to pay money to someone.
EDIT: Though in fairness, if one never actually uses a credit card at all, then one never takes out debt, so I suppose it's probably better to say "if one has a credit card that one uses".
EDIT2: Though all this is not to diminish your point that not carrying credit card debt from month to month is generally a pretty good rule to live by.
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I mean, it depends on what you mean by that. Anyone who has a credit card is going to have debt, just by virtue of needing to pay the bill.
But if you mean "most Americans have a negative net worth" --- taking into account assets and debts --- most Americans have a positive net worth.
https://www.kiplinger.com/retirement/average-net-worth-by-age-how-do-you-measure-up
The median net worth of all Americans in 2022 was $192,900.
I'd be interested to see the median net worth after removing the top 1%, but I can't be bothered to Google it atm ..
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I'd be interested to see the median net worth after removing the top 1%, but I can't be bothered to Google it atm ..
It'd have an effect, but not a large one --- that's why one uses median, rather than mean.
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I think most americans identify with the book cover, and not the book.
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Sorry, I'm dense. For me being in debt and paying off something like a loan on a house has the purpose of paying something you do not have the funds for to pay off in one go. Seeing as the longer you take paying it off, the more you actually pay since rates increase or whatever, depends on contract specififcs.
How is it not a smart thing for you? Is this about US credit rating system or something else.
Edit: thanks to all replies, not gonna spam thank yous to you all. Didn't consider those options.
Besides what others have said, there is a mortgage interest deduction on taxes in the US. It’s basically the government saying “we want you to buy a house, so for the interest you pay on a home loan, you don’t have to pay taxes on it.” So combine that with a low rate, and it absolutely makes sense to have that debt and put the money to work elsewhere.
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I don't know anyone pretending they aren't broke in America...I know a lot of good people struggling paycheck to paycheck and that's it. I love how Lemmy has become this echo chamber of hate for Americans when y'all are just as fucked in Europe and other countries too with so many similar or different issues. Imagine a little compassion for all people rather than assuming "America bad because America". Just so incredibly sad and stupid to see how dumb so many people are.. that kind of thought process is exactly the same type of people that vote for trump that have this same attitude about "insert race or country here". Y'all need a reality check, yesterday...
