Over 40% of consumers are still in debt from last year’s holiday purchases

For many consumers, tidings of good joy weren’t the only thing they brought with them to Christmas Day.

A new survey of 2,032 U.S. consumers from personal finance firm LendingTree found that 41 percent of people are still carrying debt from the previous holiday season. LendingTree Chief Consumer Finance Analyst Matt Schulz said the leftover debt pushed people to alternative financing options, such as buy now, pay later, to help pay for spending.