54 million Americans have been in credit card debt for at least a year. Here are the best payoff strategies

 Credit cards are one of the most expensive ways to borrow money from month to month, and yet many Americans continue to take on ever-increasing amounts of this debt.

On the heels of another rate hike by the Federal Reserve, the average credit card rate is now more than 20% on average, an all-time high, making it even harder to dig out of debt. While balances are higher, more cardholders are also carrying debt from month to month, according to a new Bankrate report. Now, 47% of borrowers carry over card balances each month, the report found. And of those who are carrying a balance, 60%, or roughly 54 million people, have been in debt for at least a year. “The situation is noticeably worse than it was a few years ago,” said Ted Rossman, senior industry analyst at Bankrate. “More people are carrying more debt and at very high interest rates.” Read more...

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