“Merry Christmas. Nobody uses the credit card till June!”
When Peter Griffin said that, he wasn’t joking…He was speaking for half the country. So how many American families actually have this problem? A lot.A “Holy crap, Lois!” amount. Let’s break it down: 📌 1. 48% of Americans go into debt EVERY holiday season. Nearly half the country digs a holiday hole they spend months climbing out of. 📌 2. The average person adds $1,500 in new debt—JUST for Christmas. And that’s per person, not per family. 📌 3. 35% of people still haven't paid off LAST YEAR'S Christmas. Meaning they’re paying interest on gifts they don’t even remember giving.(Or gifts they’re still paying interest on despite the item being broken, lost, or eaten by the dog.) 📌 4. Credit card companies LOVE December. The average U.S. credit card APR is 22–27%, which means: - You spend $1,000 - You think you’ll “pay it off next month.” - The credit card company says, “We’ll take $300 in interest for Christmas. Thanks, champ.” 📌 5. Most families need 3–6 months to recover. Which is why “No credit card till June!” isn't a joke. It's literally the timeline Americans need to undo the holiday damage.