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In the Valley of the Shadow of Debt
Retirement and debt do not play together well.
If you are carrying over credit card debt from month to month, take it as a warning sign: Your personal finances are sailing rough seas and in danger of capsizing. If you’re already retired and living on a fixed income, it will be even harder to keep your fiscal ship from crashing against the rocks.
Unfortunately, nearly half of Americans aged 50 or older are in the same boat. We’ve been lured by the siren songs of easy credit, attracted by all the nice things we can buy now and pay for later. Only now, it’s later.
Data from the federal Survey of Consumer Finances report that in households headed by people aged 65 to 74, average debt is $45,000 — up from $10,150 just 30 years ago. In households headed by people 75 or older, the average is $36,000, a sevenfold increase.
On the positive side, there are resources available to help navigate through the stormy passages. Also on the plus side, we’ve done away with debtors’ prisons.
On the other hand, major debts can lead to stress and can damage health. The greater the debt, the worse the health outcomes.
