We are increasingly becoming a nation of debtors. According to the New York Fed’s latest Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit, household debt rose in 2017 for the fifth consecutive year. In the fourth quarter of 2017, household debt grew 1.5 percent from the third quarter to $13.15 trillion. That’s equivalent to 68 percent of U.S. GDP.
Debt increased in all major categories: in mortgages (1.6 percent), student loans (up 1.5 percent), auto loans (up 0.7 percent) and credit cards (up 3.2 percent). On the other hand, it did fall 0.9 percent for home equity loans.
Although credit card debt led the fourth-quarter debt increase, consumers owe far less in credit card debt than in all other major categories, just $834 billion. That's compared with $8.88 trillion for mortgages, $1.38 trillion for student loans and $1.22 trillion for auto loans.
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