De Amerikaanse Middenklasse

De Daily Bulletin bericht: 'Are you drowning in debt?Much of the middle class is.

It's the middle of the month, a Wednesday evening that Joe Homeowner has set aside to pay the bills.
The paycheck at the end of the month pays the next month's mortgage; it's this one that takes care of everything else. Everything else, that is, that can be paid.
He starts with car insurance, noticing that his rate has improved a little, thanks to careful driving.
Then come the utilities -- gas, electric, telephone, cable. He looks twice at the cable bill. Does he really need HBO?
He's cruising along. Life has definitely been easier since he made the final payment on his car. Now if it will only hold together for a few years ... .
One bill left and $600 remaining. Maybe he can really make a dent in his credit-card bill this month.
Then his wife says something. ‘‘Did you remember you're supposed to pay Susan's tuition?''
Their daughter at Cal State Fullerton. The envelope that wasn't with all the others. A little more than $1,300 for the semester's tuition and fees.
Joe sighs. He'll still be able to pay $600 on his credit card, but only by charging the semester on the same card. Just like that, he has slipped further into debt by $700.
It's very little consolation that he is exactly like millions of other middle-income Americans these days.
Joe is drowning in debt.
A few quick facts about middle-class debt from a study by the Center for American Progress:
-- Middle-income is defined as between $25,000 and $70,000 a year.
-- Debt increased by 30.3 percentage points between 2001 and 2004 to stand at 108.4 percent of income.
-- White and Latino families spend an average of 18.3 percent of their income for debt service; African-American families spend 18.2 percent.
-- 13.7 percent of families spend more than 40 percent of their monthly income on debt service.
-- Contrary to popular belief, the biggest jump in debt has been for educational costs, which increased by 24.6 percent after adjustment for inflation between 2001 and 2004.' Lees verder:
http://www.dailybulletin.com/news/ci_3861257