Patricia
M3_A1 Interest rates Discussion
General Education Mathematics
MAT109
Professor Mary Troy
Okay despite the great example provided by Professor Troy, I am still a bit apprehensive about my understanding of what is expected in this week’s discussion assignment, so I hope it is understandable and correct.
I. How is consumer debt different today than in the past?
According to a couple of different articles that I read, and the U.S. Federal reserve website U.S. Debt is at an all-time high. In the article posted on Time.com titled “Overall debt levels rose at the fastest rates seen since 2007, according to a new study by the Federal Reserve of New York” this article states that “within the last three months of 2013 U.S. debt had an increase of 2.1% this is said to be the highest rate of increase since 2011 and this debt includes mortgages, auto loans, student loans, and credit card debt” (Frizell, 2014). This information makes me wonder what is contributing to this rise in debt across America, is it due to an increase in unemployment, or a lack of financial common sense. Not that I am one to talk about others debt being that I have a car loan, a mortgage, and of course student loans, but I have taken pride in making certain that my debts have achievable end dates in fact my mortgage and car loan currently only have 3 ½ years left. I do admit I have a credit card, however it is for emergencies only and thankfully there have been no big emergencies that have required its use, I guess I just have a hard time understanding how our nation can possibly get so far into debt with little hope of paying it back. And I think I have got a bit off track here so let’s move on.
*After the references I have included the table that I found from the Federal Reserve.
II. What role do interest rates play in mounting consumer debt?
This is another are I am out of my depths in and so I am going to wing it a bit. I suppose that when a credit card company offers a consumer a credit card with and initial low interest rate it draws them in and once they end up in over their heads the interest rate increases making it difficult to pay back the amount that has been put onto the credit card. This I think puts the consumer in a place where they are getting deeper and deeper into debt, while the credit card companies make more income.
I suppose another way this could be said is that while interest rates are low people are more likely to take out loans because they will have less interest to pay back this can be very appealing to someone who is looking to purchase a home, a car, to get a student loan, or to get a credit card so that they can buy things that they otherwise couldn’t afford to buy. Unfortunately rates don’t always stay low and that is where the consumer tends to get into trouble.
So that bring me to the effect that all of this debt can have on the economy, when people borrow more and more from banks especially in times of poor ec.
1. Patricia
M3_A1 Interest rates Discussion
General Education Mathematics
MAT109
Professor Mary Troy
Okay despite the great example provided by Professor
Troy, I am still a bit apprehensive about my understanding of
what is expected in this week’s discussion assignment, so I hope
it is understandable and correct.
I. How is consumer debt different today than in the past?
According to a couple of different articles that I read, and
the U.S. Federal reserve website U.S. Debt is at an all-time
high. In the article posted on Time.com titled “Overall debt
levels rose at the fastest rates seen since 2007, according to a
new study by the Federal Reserve of New York” this article
states that “within the last three months of 2013 U.S. debt had
an increase of 2.1% this is said to be the highest rate of increase
since 2011 and this debt includes mortgages, auto loans, student
loans, and credit card debt” (Frizell, 2014). This information
makes me wonder what is contributing to this rise in debt across
America, is it due to an increase in unemployment, or a lack of
financial common sense. Not that I am one to talk about others
debt being that I have a car loan, a mortgage, and of course
student loans, but I have taken pride in making certain that my
debts have achievable end dates in fact my mortgage and car
loan currently only have 3 ½ years left. I do admit I have a
credit card, however it is for emergencies only and thankfully
there have been no big emergencies that have required its use, I
guess I just have a hard time understanding how our nation can
possibly get so far into debt with little hope of paying it back.
And I think I have got a bit off track here so let’s move on.
*After the references I have included the table that I found from
the Federal Reserve.
II. What role do interest rates play in mounting consumer debt?
2. This is another are I am out of my depths in and so I am
going to wing it a bit. I suppose that when a credit card
company offers a consumer a credit card with and initial low
interest rate it draws them in and once they end up in over their
heads the interest rate increases making it difficult to pay back
the amount that has been put onto the credit card. This I think
puts the consumer in a place where they are getting deeper and
deeper into debt, while the credit card companies make more
income.
I suppose another way this could be said is that while
interest rates are low people are more likely to take out loans
because they will have less interest to pay back this can be very
appealing to someone who is looking to purchase a home, a car,
to get a student loan, or to get a credit card so that they can buy
things that they otherwise couldn’t afford to buy. Unfortunately
rates don’t always stay low and that is where the consumer
tends to get into trouble.
So that bring me to the effect that all of this debt can have
on the economy, when people borrow more and more from
banks especially in times of poor economic conditions this can
put a strain on the financial standing of the bank, and even
though the consumer often makes payment on said debts we
can’t always foresee potential hazards such as job loss which
makes paying back our loans difficult if not impossible. When
backs are holding loans which are in default they are losing
money, and when banks are losing money it makes giving loans
to others less likely thus restricting new business opportunities
and so forth.
III. What are the typical interest rates applied to credit cards
mortgages, and other debt?
In the case of interest rates it generally varies depending on
the type of loan, whether it is a fixed rate, a variable rate, who
is holding the loan etc. so let’s start looking at the various
rates.
Credit card rates- (CreditCards.com)
Business credit cards- *
3. Card company
Intro rate/time
Average rate
Credit requirements
Capital One
0% for 6 months
12.9% - 22.9%
Excellent credit/ Fair
American Express
0% for 9 months
12.24% - 19.24%
Excellent credit
Bank of America
0% for 9 months
11.24% - 17.99% Variable
Excellent credit
Chase
0% for 12 months
13.24% - 15.24% Variable
Excellent credit
Citibank
0% for 6 months
15.24% Variable
Excellent credit
Student credit cards- *
Card company
Intro rate/time
Average rate
Credit requirements
Discover
0% for 6 months
12.99% - 21.99 % Variable
Fair
Citi
0% for 7 months
4. 13.99% - 23.99% Variable
Good
Capital one
N/A
19.8% Variable
Average
Bank of America
0% for 15 months
10.99% - 20.99% Variable
Good
UPromise
0% for 12 months
12.99% - 20.99% Variable
Good
Travel/ Airline-*
Card company
Intro rate/time
Average rate
Credit requirements
Capital One
0% for 12 months
11.9% - 20.9%
Excellent / good
Bank of America
0% for 12 Months
14.99% - 22.99%
Excellent
Chase
N/A
15.99% Variable
Excellent
Citi
N/A
13.99% - 21.99% Variable
Excellent
5. Barclay
0% for 12 months
14.99% - 18.99% Variable
Excellent
Visa
0% for 12 months
14.99% Variable
Excellent
American Express
N/A
15.24% - 19.24% Variable
Excellent
The Carnival
0% for 12 Months
13.99% - 20.99% Variable
Excellent
*these figures are an accumulation of each company and vary
depending on card type
Mortgage Rates- These rates vary depending on location,
duration, down payment, credit score and type of loan. For this
I used my location, with a loan amount of $165,000 with 20%
down and a FICO of 740+.
Fixed
10 Year
3.0%- 3.76% APR
15 Year
3.24%- 4.11% APR
20 Year
3.97%- 4.39% APR
30 Year
4.20% - 4.69% APR
Arm
3/1
6. 2.77% - 2.89%
5/1
2.72% - 3.04%
7/1
2.92% - 3.16%
10/1
3.32% - 3.58%
Auto Loans-
New Car
Used car
36 Months
2.34% - 4.99%
1.49% - 6.74%
48 Months
1.49%- 4.99%
1.99% - 4.30%
60 Months
1.99% - 5.24%
2.49% - 3.90%
72 Months
2.24%
N/A
There are a number of factors that can affect what kind of
percentage rate one is able to get, so I guess I should go over
those as well.
1.) Credit score and history, if you have a good credit score
then you present less of a risk to banks which makes them more
willing to lend to you with a lower rate and higher if your credit
score is blemished. Things that can give you a bad score is if
you have a tendency to pay bills late, bankruptcy, or you have
no history at all.
2.) Down Payment, the more that you put down means you need
to borrow less which leads to a lower interest rate.
7. 3.) Loan time frame, the less time that you have to borrow the
money can give you a lower rate, plus less interest that you
have to pay.
4.) Type of interest rate, fixed or variable makes a difference in
the rate you receive. If you have a fixed rate then your rate
stays the same, however if it is a variable rate then it is subject
to change depending on the current market.
5.) Income, unfortunately the type of job that one has and how
much money they make tends to be a determining factor in what
type of interest rates that they may qualify for.
There are other types of loans as well such as student loans and
business loans which have varying interest rates depending on
the type of loan as well as the current economic conditions.
IV. Many of today’s interest rates are variable rather than fixed.
What difference does that make to pension plans, housing loans,
and other personal finances?
In the case of variable versus fixed many choose the variable
rate for loans because of the potential it has for lower interest
rates, of course that also means that amount of your payments
can vary. The way that a variable rate works is when the Prime
rate drops so do the interest rates and vice versa. In the case of
a fixed rate you have one set rat for the duration of your loan,
and if you are lucky like I was you will find someone offering a
lower rate.
How a variable interest rate can affect pensions actually
depends on whether you choose lifetime payment or lump sum
payments when it comes time to retire as well as your age at the
time of retirement. A pension plan is an investment which you
pay into while working so that when you retire you are not
broke. I think that the way a variable rate affects this is that
when rates are low less is being credited to the pension plan and
when they are high the more money gets credited. Of course I
think that the interest rate also effect what you get out of your
pension as well, however, I am probably way off on this
subject.
8. References
Amadeo, K. (2014). Average Consumer Debt Statistics and How
It Affects the Economy. Retrieved March 26, 2014, from
9. http://useconomy.about.com/od/demand/a/Average-Consumer-
Debt-Statistics.htm?p=1
Bankrate (n.d.). Auto Loan Rates in Portland, OR by Bankrate.
Retrieved March 26, 2014, from
http://www.bankrate.com/funnel/auto/auto-
results.aspx?zip=97220&prods=73
CreditCards.com (n.d.). Airline Credit Cards & Frequent Flyer
Miles - CreditCards.com. Retrieved March 26, 2014, from
http://www.creditcards.com/airline-miles-page-2.php
Federal Reserve (n.d.). FRB: G.19 Release-- Consumer Credit.
Retrieved March 26, 2014, from
http://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/g19/current/
FinAid (n.d.). FinAid | Loans | Private Student Loans.
Retrieved March 26, 2014, from
http://www.finaid.org/loans/privatestudentloans.phtml
Franklin, M. B. (2008, March). Pension Payouts Are Shrinking-
Kiplinger. Retrieved March 26, 2014, from
http://www.kiplinger.com/article/retirement/T037-C000-S002-
pension-payouts-are-shrinking.html
Frizell, S. (2014, February 19). Americans? Personal Debt
Levels Increasing At Rapid Rate: Fed Reserve - TIME.
Retrieved March 26, 2014, from http://time.com/8740/federal-
reserve-debt-bankrate-consumers-credit-card/
Fuscaldo, D. (2011, December 21). Adjustable Rate Mortgages:
Do They Ever Make Sense? | Fox Business. Retrieved March 26,
2014, from http://www.foxbusiness.com/personal-
finance/2011/12/21/adjustable-rate-mortgages-do-ever-make-
sense/
Hewitt, J. (n.d.). About Pension Annuity Rates | eHow.
Retrieved March 26, 2014, from
http://www.ehow.com/about_4622940_pension-annuity-
rates.html
Investopedia (n.d.). Variable Interest Rate Definition |
Investopedia. Retrieved March 26, 2014, from
http://www.investopedia.com/terms/v/variableinterestrate.asp
Money Economics (n.d.). Beginner?s Guide to Debt Interest
10. Rates - Money Economics. Retrieved March 26, 2014, from
http://www.moneyeconomics.com/financial-guides/debt-
management/beginners-guide-to-debt-interest-rates/
Pimco (n.d.). PIMCO | In Depth - The Upside of Low Interest
Rates for Pension Plans: Issuing Debt to Fund Pension
Liabilities. Retrieved March 26, 2014, from
http://www.pimco.com/EN/Insights/Pages/The-Upside-of-Low-
Interest-Rates-for-Pension-Plans-Issuing-Debt-to-Fund-Pension-
Liabilities.aspx
Singer, M. C. (2012, December 7). U.S. Consumer Debt Hits
All-Time High: Borrowing Rises To $2.7 Trillion.
Retrieved March 26, 2014, from
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/07/us-consumer-debt-
record_n_2260457.html?view=print&comm_ref=false
Stern, D. (2014, February 19). Consumer Credit Advantages and
Disadvantages | LIVESTRONG.COM. Retrieved March 26,
2014, from http://www.livestrong.com/article/68036-consumer-
credit-advantages-disadvantages/
Figure 1: Table from
http://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/g19/current/ showing
11. the debt trends of American’s from 2009 to present.
consumer Credit Outstanding (Levels) 1
(Billions of dollars)
Not seasonally adjusted
Year
Quarter
Month
2012
2013
2014
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013r
Q4
Q1
Q2
Q3
Q4r
Novr
Decr
Janp
Total
2,553.5
2,648.1
2,757.0
2,924.3
3,098.6
2,924.3
2,924.4
2,967.7
3,038.8