A recent Prosper survey of 517 adult Americans shows credit card debt has a marked effect on the average American family.
The average adult possesses four credit cards, and the average household carries $15,706 in total credit card debt, according to the survey.
Less than one in five (18.6%) of respondents who report having a credit card pay the current balance owed while 20.5 percent pay the minimum.
“The majority of respondents are carrying at least some of their balance over to the next month on a regular basis,” the report states.
When it comes to the actual cost of carrying a balance on a credit card, a surprisingly large percentage of Americans prefer not to know. Only 48 percent know the interest rate on every card they have, while 12.4 percent do not know any of them. One in nine respondents know the annual fee charged by each credit provider.
When people were asked about their strategy for erasing credit card debt, their answers point to a disturbing lack of financial literacy while also revealing the marketing challenges faced by the alternative finance industry.
Less than half of respondents indicated having any sort of plan. of the 42.2 percent who do, 36.5 percent plan to pay off each card individually. Only 1.4 percent planned on taking out a non-bank loan.
Respondents were asked what sacrifices they were prepared to make if it meant immediately getting out of debt. Almost half (46.3 percent) said they would make no such concession.
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