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Middle-income Americans age 50 and older are now carrying more credit card debt on average than younger people, according to a 2012 study released by Demos. This is a reversal of the findings from the Demos survey which took place in 2008.
In the media
Roy Williams
Emmett Pinkston served in the military for 30 years, first in the Marines, then in the Air Force, then in the Army. He helped coordinate security for President George W. Bush during the G8 Summit on Sea Island, Ga., in 2004, and worked as an intelligence analyst in Iraq from 2005 to 2007, some of
In the media
Saki Knafo
While much of the country’s attention is focused on the need for job growth, a new report to be released Monday, March 4 by national public policy organization Demos reveals the ways in which the use of credit history in hiring acts as a significant barrier to employment and may lead to
Press release/statement
Young adults are pulling back on credit-card debt for similar reasons, said Amy Traub, a senior policy analyst at Demos, a public policy research organization. It found that Americans age 25 to 34 cut their credit card debt in half between 2008 and 2012. All around them, young adults are seeing
In the media
Tami Luhby
Despite millennials' lingering reputation as financial delinquents, it turns out not everyone drowning in credit card debt has a newly-printed college diploma and a stack of student loan bills. A recent article by Reuters' Chris Taylor reveals baby boomers are facing an even steeper road to
In the media
Megan Durisin
Mandy Woodruff
Harsh, an IT professional from Tuscola, Illinois, is 62, around the age at which a lot of people start actively planning to retire to a white-sandy beach with a frozen margarita in hand. Harsh's debt snuck up on her as she helped her two daughters with college and living costs. She went back to
In the media
Chris Taylor
High unemployment and underemployment forced one in four Americans to pull money out of a retirement plan to make ends meet. ... A separate study on credit-card debt done by Demos, which surveyed some 997 households, warns that middle-income households of those nearing retirement are running up huge
In the media
Gregory Bresiger
Alfred Carpenter, 52, was working for a high-end shoe store in 2007, when the recession put the company out of business. A long-time salesman, Carpenter wasn't worried about getting another job, but then broke an ankle a few months later and ended up in the hospital. With no insurance and a $50,000
In the media
Kathy Kristof
A recent survey by Demos found that middle-income Americans 50 years of age and older have more credit card debt, on average, than younger Americans, a finding opposite of that reported in a 2008 survey. The report revealed that older American households had an average credit card balance of $8,278
In the media
Daniel Purt
Elderly Americans are carrying more credit card debt, according to a new survey. The survey reports the main reason is due to job loss and medical bills, not because of a lack of financial responsibility. The study looked at 997 middle-income households that were carrying credit card debt for at
In the media