Average Debt Amount For a 50 Year Old and Beyond (2023)

I pride myself in only having three loans in my life. One car loan in my 20's and two home loans in my 40's that were paid off in my 50's. Life is good when you are not giving a great % of your money to the bank.

Boomer here, with zero debt since my 40's.

My only problem with such advice is it tries to be a one size fits all. Personally, I do have a mortgage for about $350k on a $700k house, but it is at 2.25% fixed rate. I have more than enough in after tax stock fund to pay this off, but WHY? Even my treasuries are earning over 5%, why should I pay off a 2.25% mortgage in such an environment? I also own another home worth about $450k outright, so could also sell it to pay off the mortgage, but its return is also higher than 2.25%.

I just can't pull the trigger to pay off such a low rate versus having the money earning much higher elsewhere. Seems extremely counterintuitive. I have zero other debt otherwise and am 10 years to retirement.

Early 50s here. Been debt free for 3 years now. Behind a bit in savings, but making progress. Plan to retire in less than 8 years comfortably. I do use my credit card almost exclusively, but it is paid in full every month. Savings rate at about 55% of gross.

My friend with debt and savings/investments feel wealthier than they are in reality. It causes them to do stupid things that seem minor but add up. For instance, I have a friend who buys groceries and lets them spoil, while dining out. He often leaves 100% tip. That's a huge average spent on meals. He pays for lawn service, and monthly car wash service. I'm completely debt free and I have more assets but I don't behave this way. But it's typical of people who carry debt with savings.

What’s even sadder about this scenario is that many boomers are sitting on booming equity yet they still have student loans?? 🫣😤