People can get into seriously debt for a variety of reasons that are often not of any fault of their own. Here are the top ten ways in which people find themselves in debt:
- Divorce - More than half of all Americans are divorced at one point or another and it can be very expensive. Between the lawyers, child support, alimony and other expenses anyone can quickly go broke.
- Poor Money Management - People who do not adhere to a monthly spending plan may quickly find themselves in trouble quickly if things get out of hand - especially with the ease of getting credit.
- Lost Job or Reduced Income - Perhaps the most common reason for debt troubles is a lost job or reduced income due to downsizing, layoffs, or other events at work. Obviously, if expenses remain the same and income drops there will be problems.
- Gambling - Every time you step foot in a casino you are statistically likely to lose money, yet gambling continues to be a drug to many people hoping to win big. It can be addictive and hard to stop when credit is so easy to obtain.
- Underemployment - Sometimes those who find new jobs after being laid off are simply making too little to support the lifestyle that they are accustomed to in the past. Again, when expenses are greater than income there will be problems.
- Medical Expenses - Gaps in medical coverage, costly procedures and lapsed policies can be extremely costly. And when just about every doctor accepts credit cards, it is not hard to see why there would be problems.
- Miscommunication - Keep an ongoing discussion in your family about money matters. Nothing is worse than one spouse not communicating problems before they compound and get even worse.
- No Saving - Americans now have a negative savings rate for the first time since the stock market crash. Clearly this causes problems as there is no longer a failsafe.
- Future Spending - Those counting on a cash windfall in the future should be careful to spend prudently until the cash is actually in hand. While credit cards make it easy to spend money you don't have, it's important to only spend what you can earn.
- Financial Illiteracy - Some people just don't understand how money works and grows and simply prefer to live in the moment. Financial mistakes only get more expensive as time goes on, so it is important for these people to get educated and get in control.