Most Americans look forward to retirement as the time when they can relax a bit financially. By the time you stop working, the hope is that your house is paid off, your debt is minimal and your monthly expenses decrease. Unfortunately, for a growing share of Americans, that model no longer reflects reality.
Today’s retirees are increasingly entering retirement with mortgages, credit card balances and auto loans still in place. According to the Federal Reserve’s Survey of Consumer Finances, the share of households headed by someone aged 65 to 74 carrying debt has more than doubled since the early 1990s, rising from roughly 30% to over 60% in recent surveys.
