How much debt is normal for a 22 year old?
Debt is part of the average American's life, and you can start to accumulate it as young as your 20s. New findings from Experian's 2020 State of Credit report show that the average Gen Z consumer (ages 24 and younger) has about $10,942 worth of debt, not including mortgages.
Aim to have three to six months' worth of expenses set aside. To figure out how much you should have saved for emergencies, simply multiply the amount of money you spend each month on expenses by either three or six months to get your target goal amount.
The average American has about $6,000 in credit card debt, which can be a challenging amount to manage. If you're just making minimum payments, expect to stay in credit card debt for many years – about 25 years on $6,000, by our calculations.
There's no specific definition of “a lot of debt” — $10,000 might be a high amount of debt to one person, for example, but a very manageable debt for someone else. Calculating your debt-to-income (DTI) ratio gives you a rough idea.
Ideally, financial experts like to see a DTI of no more than 15 to 20 percent of your net income. For example, a family with a $250 car payment and $100 of monthly credit card payments, and $2,500 net income per month would have a DTI of 14 percent ($350/$2,500 = 0.14 or 14%).
Age Group | Average Debt | Delinquency Rate |
---|---|---|
18-25 | $8,091 | 1.47% |
26-35 | $17,191 | 1.49% |
36-45 | $26,048 | 1.11% |
46-55 | $32,508 | 0.83% |
Age by decade | Average net worth | Median net worth |
---|---|---|
20s | $99,272 | $6,980 |
30s | $277,788 | $34,691 |
40s | $713,796 | $126,881 |
50s | $1,310,775 | $292,085 |
- Develop good budgeting habits. ...
- Pay down debt. ...
- Automate your savings. ...
- Build good credit. ...
- Start saving for retirement. ...
- Make sure you and your loved ones are covered financially. ...
- Work toward owning your home.
The median salary of 20- to 24-year-olds is $720 per week, which translates to $38,012 per year. Many Americans start out their careers in their 20s and don't earn as much as they will once they reach their 30s.
Running up $50,000 in credit card debt is not impossible. About two million Americans do it every year. Paying off that bill?
Is 20k in debt a lot?
“That's because the best balance transfer and personal loan terms are reserved for people with strong credit scores. $20,000 is a lot of credit card debt and it sounds like you're having trouble making progress,” says Rossman.
$5,000 in credit card debt can be quite costly in the long run. That's especially the case if you only make minimum payments each month. However, you don't have to accept decades of credit card debt. There are a few things you can do to pay your debt off faster - potentially saving thousands of dollars in the process.
Debt is part of the average American's life, and you can start to accumulate it as young as your 20s.
Here's the average debt balances by age group: Gen Z (ages 18 to 23): $9,593. Millennials (ages 24 to 39): $78,396. Gen X (ages 40 to 55): $135,841.
Instead, rich people tend to use debt as a tool to help them build more wealth. For example, very rich people might borrow money to acquire a company if they think they can improve its profitability.
Key takeaways
Debt-to-income ratio is your monthly debt obligations compared to your gross monthly income (before taxes), expressed as a percentage. A good debt-to-income ratio is less than or equal to 36%. Any debt-to-income ratio above 43% is considered to be too much debt.
Average American Debt by Age
Here's a look at how much nonmortgage debt Americans have by age group, and the average non-mortgage per capita debt for each group: 18-29-year-olds: $69 billion total, $12,871 average.
Debt can be considered “good” if it has the potential to increase your net worth or significantly enhance your life. A student loan may be considered good debt if it helps you on your career track. Bad debt is money borrowed to purchase rapidly depreciating assets or assets for consumption.
18-24-year-olds face crucial transitions to adulthood, including first experiences of debt and borrowing. Although they report high levels of financial worry, they are comparatively unlikely to seek support.
How Many Americans Are Living Paycheck to Paycheck? A 2023 survey conducted by Payroll.org highlighted that 78% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck, a 6% increase from the previous year. In other words, more than three-quarters of Americans struggle to save or invest after paying for their monthly expenses.
How much debt are 20 year olds in?
How Much Debt Does the Average 20-Year-Old Have? As of 2023, Experian reports that the average non-mortgage debt for Generation Z in the U.S., which includes 20-year-olds, is around $15,105.
Americans under 25 who make over $100k per year are in the top 1% of earners in their age group. From age 18-24, only 1% of earners (7% altogether) earn $100k per year or more. This makes these age groups by far the lowest earners in the US. Americans make the most income gains between 25 and 35.
I would say that a “good amount” would be about six months of living expenses if you are on your own rather than living with your parents. This assumes you are not still in school, but working full time. Most 23 year olds with jobs should be saving some of their income.
By the time you're 25, you probably have accrued at least a few years in the workforce, so you may be starting to think seriously about saving money. But saving might still be a challenge if you're earning an entry-level salary or you have significant student loan debt. By age 25, you should have saved about $20,000.
A 2018 Pew Research Center analysis of Census Bureau data found that only 24% of young adults were financially independent by age 22, as opposed to 32% in 1980.
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