Have You Even Met the Jones'?

Who in the world are these Jones people that we have to keep up with?

If you've lived in the USA for any period of time, surely you've run across the saying "Keeping up with the Jones'" a time or two. It is an idiom in our country and when it is spoken of, most of time it is in humor. Let me say right now, there is nothing humorous about it.

Let's examine these JONES people shall we?

~In 2006, the United States Census Bureau determined that there were nearly 1.5 billion credit cards in use in the U.S. A stack of all those credit cards would reach more than 70 miles into space -- and be almost as tall as 13 Mount Everests. (Source: NY Times, Feb. 23, 2009)

~Eighty-four percent of the student population overall have credit cards, an increase of approximately 11 percent since the fall of 2004. (Source: Sallie Mae, "How Undergraduate Students Use Credit Cards," April 2009)

~On average, today's consumer has a total of 13 credit obligations on record at a credit bureau. These include credit cards (such as department store charge cards, gas cards, and bank cards) and installment loans (auto loans, mortgage loans, student loans, etc.). Not included are savings and checking accounts (typically not reported to a credit bureau). Of these 13 credit obligations, nine are likely to be credit cards and four are likely to be installment loans. (Source: myfico.com)

~Average credit card debt per household -- regardless of whether they have a credit card or not -- was $8,329 at the end of 2008. (Source: Nilson Report, April 2009)

~The average outstanding credit card debt for households that have a credit card was $10,679 at the end of 2008. One year earlier, that average was $10,637. (Source: Nilson Report, April 2009)

~"As household wealth has declined in the downturn, more American families are facing financial distress due to high debt burdens. In 2007, before the recession began, 14.7 percent of U.S. families had debt exceeding 40 percent of their income." (Source: U.S. Congress' Joint Economic Committee, "Vicious Cycle: How Unfair Credit Card Company Practices Are Squeezing Consumers and Undermining the Recovery," May 2009)

~The average American with a credit file is responsible for $16,635 in debt, excluding mortgages, according to Experian. (Source: U.S. News and World Report, "The End of Credit Card Consumerism," August 2008)

~The average college graduate has nearly $20,000 in debt; average credit card debt has increased 47 percent between 1989 and 2004 for 25-to 34-year-olds and 11 percent for 18-to 24-year-olds. Nearly one in five 18-to 24-year-olds is in "debt hardship," up from 12 percent in 1989. (Source: Demos.org, "The Economic State of Young America," May 2008)

~28 percent of those surveyed say their ability to pay off their credit card balance has become more difficult. (Source: Javelin Strategy & Research, "Credit Card Issuer Profitability in a Difficult Economy," July 2008)

These are only a small snapshot of what is going on out there with people and their finances. Most of the time we get into these traps, because of trying to KEEP UP with or IMPRESS people who really don't care anyway!

"My neighbor got the new heavy duty snow blower, I will one up him with my new top of the line model. My Co-worker buys those nice designer shoes, I will one up her with a matching designer purse."

Silly right? The problem comes when we live on impulse, trying to match up with what others view us as, and then live an internal struggle because of our stress. If you are tempted to keep up appearances, ask yourself frankly, "Who pays my bills?" If they answer is the name of the person you are trying to impress, great, purchase it. If not, then bypass the purchase and move on with your life.

Truly at the end of the day, the person you are looking to impress is not thinking about you or your fancy purchases. They are too busy thinking about how stressed they are because of all their over spending.

RISE ABOVE THE REST!