Credit card debt in the U.S. has reached a record high but around 23% of Americans are putting less money toward paying it down, per New York Life's survey.
I did that for a number of years. I never had a credit card because I never wanted to spend money if I didn’t know I had it. When it came time to buy a house, they told me they couldn’t give me a loan because I didn’t have credit history. I had to get a credit card in order to get a loan. You can’t take on debt unless you’ve had debt.
Meanwhile, in the Netherlands, if you don’t take on debt unnecessarily that’s seen as a good thing. No credit history is optimal.
I did that for a number of years. I never had a credit card because I never wanted to spend money if I didn’t know I had it. When it came time to buy a house, they told me they couldn’t give me a loan because I didn’t have credit history. I had to get a credit card in order to get a loan. You can’t take on debt unless you’ve had debt.
Meanwhile, in the Netherlands, if you don’t take on debt unnecessarily that’s seen as a good thing. No credit history is optimal.