US household debt hits record high of over $18 TRILLION: report

Household debt for Americans has gone to record highs, according to data released by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York earlier this November. Major causes of debt include car loans, mortgages, credit cards, and student loans.

Total household debt in America reached $18.59 trillion from July through September of 2025, which is $197 billion more than the previous quarter of the year. Debt levels overall are up $4.4 trillion from the end of 2019, before the pandemic recession.

$13.49 trillion of the figure is housing debt, while $5.09 trillion is non-housing debt, or debt not associated with people's mortgages. Student debt has hit a new record, at $1.65 trillion, and nearly 10 percent of that is delinquent by 90 days or more.

The report from the bank stated that "federal student loan payments that were not previously reported to credit bureaus between 2020Q2 and 2024Q4 are now appearing in credit reports." The report also comes as there has been an increasing rise in "buy now pay later" apps, with many Americans even using the services to purchase groceries.

Credit card balances have also increased by $24 billion, reaching $1.23 trillion in the third quarter of 2025. Credit card debt, additionally, is up around 6 percent to what it was just one year ago. Those aged between 40-49 have the most debt in their households. Age groups above and below those groups have taken on less debt.

Auto loans, however, have remained steady at around $1.66 trillion over the last quarter in the US.

The record high household debts come as October has marked the worst month for layoffs in over 20 years. There were over 153,000 job cuts in October. Some point to the uncertainty in the economy as others have said that AI is starting to have an impact in cutting into the job market.