Instead of living debt free, we’re currently in a debt crisis, and I’m not being political when I say that. I’m talking about a personal debt crisis in which the average person pays for many purchases, both small and large, with money they don’t actually have, therefore taking on more and more debt.

And, the scary thing is that many people consider debt to be normal, so they have no problem taking on debt to pay for things. But, just because everyone else is doing it, that doesn’t mean you need to as well.

The average person has a lot of debt – in fact, the average U.S. household has over $10,000 in credit card debt alone. Between high mortgages, disastrous credit card bills, student loans, car payments, all the way to loans for furniture and weddings, there is just too much debt.

There are loans for everything, and sadly, many only look at the monthly payment to determine whether or not they can make their purchase.

Some look to debt as a way of affording things for the rest of their lives. Instead of being more realistic with their finances, many people even “budget” debt well into their future. Think I’m joking? [Read more…]