More Than One Quarter of Americans (28%) Are Willing to Take on New Credit Card
Fecha Viernes, agosto 08 @ 11:31:01
Tema Internacional :: International
| Twenty eight percent of Americans are more willing to take on more credit card debt because the value of their stock portfolios has risen recently, according to the Cambridge Consumer Credit Index. Conversely, almost three quarters (72%) say stock market gains have not impacted their willingness to take on more debt.
In August 2002, a period in which the stock market had been declining sharply, 43% of Americans said they were less willing to take on additional debt and 57% said they were unaffected by the declining value of their stock portfolios.
These findings are the result of a monthly nationwide telephone poll of 1000+ adults conducted by ICR (International Communications Research) in the past week, sponsored by the Debt Relief Clearinghouse.
The overall Cambridge Consumer Credit Index dropped in August to 55, five points lower than July. The Index fell in two of its three component questions and remained unchanged in the other. The "Reality Gap," which is the difference between the amount of debt consumers say they will pay off in the next month compared to the amount of debt they actually pay off a month later, dropped by four points from July, to 6 percentage points. A month ago, 81% of Americans planned to pay off debt, while a month later 75% actually did so.
The Cambridge Consumer Credit Index is a forward-looking economic indicator gauging consumer spending and debt. It is released on the fifth business day of every month to coincide with the Federal Reserve Board's G19 release of consumer credit outstanding data.
In conjunction with the Index, Cambridge Credit Counseling Corp. is releasing its monthly survey of people who have called in for credit counseling services over the past month. Cambridge representatives ask callers for the primary reason that they found it necessary to get help with their debts now. Of the 1,160 people who answered, the following was the order of their responses:
1. I am frustrated with high bank rates and fees. (32.1%)
2. My income has been reduced from a lower salary, less overtime, or layoff. (24.9%)
3. I want to improve my ability to achieve future financial goals, like buying a house or saving for retirement. (12.3%)
4. I got into too much debt by overspending. (9.4%)
5. My lack of financial education caused me to take on too much debt. (7.8%)
6. Large medical expenses forced me to take on huge debts. (4.8%)
7. Other reasons. (6.5%)
8. My recent divorce or widowhood forced me to take on large debts. (2.2%)
For more information on the survey see ( http://www.cambridgeconsumerindex.com/camsurvey.htm )
The Cambridge Consumer Credit Index number is a composite of these three questions:
1. In the past month, have you taken on more debt or paid off debt? The Index reads 50 on this question, a drop of 10 points from July. In August, 25% of Americans say they have taken on more debt, with 18% taking on a little and 7% taking on a lot more debt. Conversely, 75% of Americans have paid off debt, with 51% paying off a little and 24%paying off a lot. The reading is sharply lower than July, when 30% of consumers had taken on more debt while 70% had paid off debt.
2. In the next month, do you anticipate taking on more debt or paying off debt? The Index reads 38 on this question, unchanged from July. In August, 19% plan to take on more debt, with 4% planning to take on a lot and 15% planning to take on a little debt. Conversely, 81% plan to pay off debt, with 60% paying off a little and 21% paying off a lot. In July, 19% planned to take on debt and 81% planned to pay off debt.
3. In the next six months, do you expect to take on debt because you are thinking of making a major purchase, such as a car, education, appliance, medical procedure, furniture or carpeting?
The Index reads 76 on this question, reversing its recent upward trend, a drop of six points from July.In August, 38% of Americans plan to take on more debt to make such purchases, with 9% taking on a lot of debt and 29% taking on a little more debt. In contrast, 62% of Americans plan to pay off debt in the next six months, with 49% expecting to pay off a little and 13% expecting to pay off a lot. In July, 41% of Americans planned to take on more debt, while 59% planned to pay off debt.
The Index survey is conducted by ICR (International Communications Research) of Media, Pennsylvania over five days in the week before the Index is released. Over 1000 households are polled based on random-digit dialing, with all demographic and regional groups in America fairly represented. The Index has a margin of error of plus or minus three percentage points.
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