The average American household is in a very precarious state.

The average American household is in deep trouble, and by "deep" I mean in debt.

The average American is so deeply in debt that they may as well stop pretending that they are free.



Some 40% of Americans with debt are spending up to half of their monthly income paying it back. And that may not even be enough to cover how much they owe....

The survey found that nearly half of Americans are carrying at least $25,000 in debt, with an average debt of $37,000, excluding mortgage payments. About one in 10 surveyed said their debt was more than $100,000.

When you are that deeply in debt there are a lot of things you can't do, such as quit your job and pursue your dream.

However, there is one thing you can still do - you can fall behind.



More than one in three Americans are living with debt in collections, according to a newly released study from the Urban Institute. The credit of 77 million Americans could be severely impacted, preventing them from reaching their financial goals.

The national average of debt reported in collections is $5,187; held by 35% of the population with credit files. This debt does not include delinquent mortgage payments, but is instead made up of debt like unpaid medical bills, overdue credit card balances and even outstanding utility statements.

One in three means chances are that more than one person you know is in over their head right now.

40% means more than one person you know is hanging on by the skin of their teeth.

For an increasing number or working Americans, it is already too late.



Synchrony, Capital One, and Discover – a gauge of how well over-indebted consumers are managing to hang on – have together increased their Q1 provisions for bad loans by 36% year-over-year. So this is happening.

The precarious state of today's American household extends beyond that.



Some 50% of people is woefully unprepared for a financial emergency, new research finds. Nearly 1 in 5 (19%) Americans have nothing set aside to cover an unexpected emergency, while nearly 1 in 3 (31%) Americans don’t have at least $500 set aside to cover an unexpected emergency expense, according to a survey released Tuesday by HomeServe USA, a home repair service. A separate survey released Monday by insurance company MetLife found that 49% of employees are “concerned, anxious or fearful about their current financial well-being.”

The MetLife survey actually dramatically underestimates the stress and financial burden that working families are undergoing.

A Pew Research Center study gave a much more revealing report.



The American dream has inspired generations to work hard with an eye toward climbing the socioeconomic ladder. But when the Pew Research Center asked Americans whether they would rather have more money or economic stability, 9 out of 10 choose stability.

That in itself is a shocking finding, but further into the study you find out why that is.



The findings are startling. For instance, the researchers discovered that even middle-income families are spending part of each year in poverty.

“Many people who are middle class nevertheless have the experience of being poor over the course of the year,” said Rachel Schneider, a co-author of “The Financial Diaries,”...

“It’s not being able to pay all their bills,” Schneider added, “not being able to afford their groceries, having to think about putting gas in the car, having to think about whether to cancel their cable. When you work full time and still have that experience, it feels unfair.”

It is unfair.