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Older Americans see credit card debt increaseThe report released last week from Demos found that those aged 65 and over saw their credit card debt increase 26 percent since the last time the company did the survey in 2005. According to the report, those people who should be taking advantage of retirement are instead facing an average of $10,235 in credit card debt - second only to those age 35-49 who had $10,514, a 7 percent increase over the 2005 survey. While credit card debt has risen for most Americans over the last three years, the Demos report finds that those age 50-64 actually saw a 7 percent drop in their credit card debt with an average of $9,342. One explanation for the increase in debt for those over age 65 might come from the 2005 survey. At that point, the average American age 50-64 had $10,059 in credit card debt - the most of all groups. This may mean that those who had been in the 50-64 age group reached the 65+ age bracket by the 2008 survey. It also appears that with more income comes more credit card debt as those earning more than $50,000 per year had an average of $11,914 - more than those making between $35,000 and $50,000 ($10,737 in debt) and people making less than $35,000 ($7,598 in debt). Craig Copeland, a senior research associate at EBRI, told USA Today that those reaching retirement may be more prone to credit card debt as there is a higher probability that they might become disabled and would be forced to use the cards more often.
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