Why do Americans pretend they're not broke when most Americans are in debt?
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Country Last Previous Unit
Norway 210 206 %
Luxembourg 187 182 %
Netherlands 181 184 %
Canada 171 173 %
New Zealand 169 168 %
Denmark 169 174 %
Sweden 151 156 %
Finland 108 112 %
Cyprus 97.14 105 %
Belgium 95.93 102 %
France 95.35 102 %
Euro Area 93.09 96.79 %https://tradingeconomics.com/country-list/households-debt-to-income
Can't find US on there but I am know it ain't first.
Debt is the westoid material condition... The quality of life people enjoy requires it.
Yeah, I was wondering about the US too. Also, I was expecting to see debt:income more like 30%. Am I reading this list wrong?
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I owe nothing!
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Maybe the real curency was the debt we found along the way?
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Yeah, but they have a hot tub.
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.
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You said people and folk, but I think you meant men.
Its implied.
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Right? Who the fuck has a house?
I do, but I bought it used.
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Classism.
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I blame that predestination bullshit that's in the country's DNA. If you're rich it must mean God loves you and if you're poor that's due to your sins.
Not enough people talk about this. This attitude is rampant in the Republican party and no one says a word about it
Not even Republicans -
Yeah, I was wondering about the US too. Also, I was expecting to see debt:income more like 30%. Am I reading this list wrong?
It is measured to income here in %.
So I think it reads avg people carry for the year v income for that year.
It is a a very distorted metric tho... Like GDP just give you the measure of what the avg individual would contribute..
You would have to adjust for age etc to really understand what is going on. Also norway is rich it kinda reflects and rest of the well developed countries do too.
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This post did not contain any content.wrote last edited by [email protected]
If a person has a house they are paying a monthly mortgage payment towards, no one in America would consider them "broke".
I was in debt for several years from college tuition, but would not have been considered "broke" because I managed a job that met my essentials plus enough to pay down my tuition loans.
Debt isn't seen as bad so long as it's being managed. Exceptions for Dave Ramsey fan types.
You could say college and housing and medical stuff should never out a person into debt and I would agree. But that wasn't the question, it was about general perspective in the US.
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This post did not contain any content.wrote last edited by [email protected]
Being in debt isn't synonymous with being broke.
I could pay off my house tomorrow if I wanted, but financially it doesn’t make sense - so I keep the debt. That doesn’t mean my net worth is negative or that I don’t have disposable income.
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Some of us are just trying to make the most of whatever time we have left.
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In debt doesn’t mean you’re broke. Not having money to spend is being broke. I’m pretty sure most Americans will admit they’re in debt.
Yeah, exactly this. I have a mortgage and a car payment so I've got lots of debt, but I wouldn't consider myself "broke" by any stretch. I don't live paycheck-to-paycheck, I put 10% away for retirement, and I can afford to spend money where I want without stressing about it. Overall, pretty charmed compared to how a lot of folks are struggling these days and it's honestly kinda wild to act like it's comparable to anything they're going through.
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We have a very materialistic and consumeristic culture and we shame the poor.
Homeless people are more financially rich than most of this country.
Do you see the problem yet
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Being in debt isn't synonymous with being broke.
I could pay off my house tomorrow if I wanted, but financially it doesn’t make sense - so I keep the debt. That doesn’t mean my net worth is negative or that I don’t have disposable income.
wrote last edited by [email protected]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.
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You said people and folk, but I think you meant men.
My apologies. In my attempt to be horrifically racist, I forgot to also be sexist. It won't happen again.
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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.
I'm not who you are responding to, but I'm in the same position.
Interest rate on house mortgage is around 2%, currently looking to invest in an apartment in Europe. The current rates are ~4% here, so it makes more sense to keep the cheap money from the house mortgage than to trade it for more expensive money.
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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.
I have enough to pay off my house right now but I'm not because the interest rate is both lower than inflation and what I earn from interest, and other invesents, plus the increase in home values. If I paid off the house today then I also wouldn't have as much in my emergency fund. I have 5 years left of the mortgage, I'm paying roughly $50/mo interest which goes down every month.
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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.
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.
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My apologies. In my attempt to be horrifically racist, I forgot to also be sexist. It won't happen again.
God damn lazy modern bigots. Back in my day there was a word for people like you, but using it will get me banned on half the fediverse.
