Value of household debt in the U.S. 2023, by type

Consumers in the United States had over 16 trillion dollars in debt as of the third quarter of 2023. The majority of that debt were home mortgages, amounting to approximately 11.4 trillion U.S. dollars. Student and car loans were the second and third largest component of household debt.

Why is consumer debt important?

Debt influences the Consumer Sentiment Index, which is an important indicator assessing the state of the U.S. economy. The U.S. housing market is also seen a bellwether of the economic conditions in the country. The housing industry employs a large number of people, and mortgages are large investments that consumers will pay off over the course of years, sometimes decades. Because of this, financial analysts closely watch consumer debt and its effects on the demand for housing.

Attitudes towards debt

Consumer perception of debt differed, depending on the kind of debt in question. While most saw a home mortgage as a positive investment, they increasingly looked at student loan debt as a negative debt. With education costs increasing, people are incurring more student loan debt in the United States. Credit card debt also had negative connotations.