Consumer credit dropped by 10% at an annual rate. Here are the actual numbers: Link
But this is only half of the story. Remember when TARP was sold to us as a way to "unfreeze the credit markets" so that lenders would provide loans to consumers and small businesses. Well, that reason was a lie and here is proof:
U.S. banks tightened standards on all types of loans in the second quarter and said they expect to maintain strict criteria on lending until at least the second half of 2010, a Federal Reserve report showed on Aug. 17.
TARP was strictly a bailout of the financial oligarchy. The Great De-leveraging will continue which is a good thing especially considering we were at $2.58 trillion in 2008.
oops
We hit the same topic at the same time. Oh well, two different views, won't hurt anything.
You're answering a similar question I have...how much of this is banks squeezing consumers and how much is bankruptcy and charge offs and how much of it is actual choice.
Still, debt mania as a culture has been a disaster so getting off of the credit card heroin is probably a good thing...
and if you're going to get on the methadone consumer program, at least go to a credit union. Just a little less vampire than the TARP type credit card issuers.