Fed: household debt, net worth post declines
Story By: Abby Lane
Source: AP
Published Thu Dec 11, 2008, 01:45 PM MST
Updated Thu Dec 11, 2008, 01:45 PM MST
U.S. households, hit by declining home values and stock market losses, cut back on their debt levels for the first time on record.
The Federal Reserve says in its quarterly look at consumer and business finances that households reduced their debt levels by 0.8 percent at an annual rate in the July-September period, the first drop on records that go back more than 50 years.
The Fed report shows that households' net worth fell by 4.7 percent in the third quarter to $56.5 trillion, reflecting the hit Americans are taking as the value of their homes and investments decline.
