“我認(rèn)識的人里，不欠債的不是富二代，就是和有錢人結(jié)了婚?！币幻绹茉L者說。
"I don't know anyone who isn't in debt unless they're a trust-fund kid or married rich."
《紐約雜志》（New York Magazine）旗下的生活時尚雜志The Cut最近做了一項(xiàng)調(diào)查，采訪了102名讀者，了解他們的負(fù)債經(jīng)歷——從怎么欠下債務(wù)，到還了多少。結(jié)果顯示，大多數(shù)人只能在債務(wù)的深坑中掙扎，難以自拔。
這項(xiàng)調(diào)查讓我們得以一窺美國人是如何在經(jīng)濟(jì)并不寬裕的情況下依然大手大腳花錢的。這種超前消費(fèi)的習(xí)慣，也從側(cè)面揭示了美國貿(mào)易逆差背后的深層次社會原因。
美國人深陷負(fù)債泥潭
調(diào)查顯示，關(guān)稅陰霾籠罩下，美國人民正面臨前所未有的債務(wù)壓力，信用卡債務(wù)已突破歷史新高，2024年總額高達(dá)1.2萬億美元。
"Tariffs are coming, a trade war is looming, and most of us are overwhelmed with more debt than we can handle. Credit-card debt is at an all-time high, hitting a record $1.2 trillion last year, and people are having a harder time paying it off."
受訪者的債務(wù)從5000美元到150萬美元不等，其中房貸是高額負(fù)債的主要來源。大約一半受訪者的債務(wù)在5萬以下，集中在2.1萬至5萬美元之間，多數(shù)為信用卡和學(xué)生貸款。
"Our readers reported a wide range, from as little as $5,000 to $1.5 million. The higher spectrum of debt, in the $200,000-plus range, often included mortgages. Roughly half of readers have $50,000 or less in debt, with most landing somewhere in the $21,000 to $50,000 range, either from credit-card debt, student loans, or both."
債務(wù)都是哪兒來的？
從吸脂到婚禮，從碧昂斯演唱會門票到戴森美發(fā)器，美國人的信用卡賬單正承載著沉重又五花八門的“現(xiàn)代生活成本”。幾名受訪者分享了自己欠下債務(wù)的經(jīng)歷：
▌Three years ago, I got "lunchtime lipo." Put the purchase on two separate credit cards, $6,000 on one and $2,000 on another. I've gained all the weight back and currently have $1,500 dollars in interest on top of the original $8,000 payment. And I got botched.
三年前做了“午餐吸脂”，用了兩張信用卡，一張6000美元，一張2000美元。效果很失敗，體重回來了，利息也漲到了1500美元。
▌My wedding. I took out a $20,000 personal loan.
我的婚禮花銷。我申請了2萬美元的個人貸款。
▌$4,000 of my credit-card debt is from concerts and vacations. My friend and I bought Beyoncé floor seats for Renaissance — now I'm going to do it all again for Cowboy Carter.
信用卡上那4000刀欠債，都是看演唱會和度假旅游欠下的。我和朋友買了碧昂斯“文藝復(fù)興”巡演的內(nèi)場票——現(xiàn)在“牛仔卡特”巡演我準(zhǔn)備再沖一次。
▌I spent $600 on a Dyson Airwrap. Then I bought a Dyson vacuum. It seemed like the right thing to do.
六百美金的戴森卷發(fā)棒說買就買，后來覺得該配齊一套，又入了同牌吸塵器。反正刷卡的時候總覺得這錢該花！
也有許多人坦言，為了“像朋友們那樣”生活，不得不負(fù)債：
▌My personal credit card has about $25,000 in debt and most of that is from a combination of vacations, fancy dinners, clothes. All things I objectively don't need, but I want to feel like I'm able to afford the same things that my friends do. Even though I clearly can't.
我的個人信用卡上有2.5萬美元的債，大部分來自度假、豪華晚餐、買衣服。明知道這些我根本負(fù)擔(dān)不起，但我就是想看起來過得還不錯。
▌I accrue around $250 extra debt a month just by going out with friends a few times a week.
我每個月大概會因?yàn)楹团笥殉鋈ゾ鄄屯鏄?，額外增加250美元的信用卡債務(wù)。
▌At least half of my debt is trying to keep up appearances.
我背的這些債，起碼有一半純粹是為了裝門面。
債務(wù)怎么還清？
許多欠債的受訪者坦言，自己仿佛陷入了一個無解的惡性循環(huán)。也有人表示通過嫁入豪門、回家啃老，或是尋找專業(yè)債務(wù)協(xié)助服務(wù)才緩解了債務(wù)困境。
▌I have paid off about $15,000 in credit-card debt over the years, but it always creeps back up.
這些年我好不容易還掉了1.5萬美元的信用卡債，可不知不覺又欠了一屁股債。
▌I paid off $20,000 in credit-card debt, then got $30,000 in debt right after.
我還清了2萬美元的信用卡債務(wù)，但很快又欠了3萬。
▌Luckily I married into a wealthy family, and my husband used some of his trust fund to pay off my student loans.
幸運(yùn)地嫁入豪門，丈夫用信托基金還清了我的學(xué)生貸款。
▌Two years ago I moved back in with my family to save on rent. My parents live in a wealthy neighborhood where everyone wants to show each other how much money they have. I feel like my life is just this game of make sure everyone knows you have enough, dress like it, drive the car like it. I can keep up these appearances to an extent, but beneath it all, I'm drowning in debt.
兩年前，我為省房租搬回家。父母住在富人區(qū)，周遭人人攀比。我的生活成了維持光鮮表象的游戲——穿得體面、開豪車。表面風(fēng)光，實(shí)則債臺高筑。
▌For the last two years I've been working with a debt-management company to get out of what I did. You make regular payments into a savings account with them and they negotiate your debt with creditors. Once they reach a settlement amount, they'll pay it off with what you've saved and take a percentage of what they settle. These debts still follow me and I'm throwing money at them, but I have a bit of relief that someone with more knowledge is handling them.
過去兩年與債務(wù)管理公司合作：定期向其儲蓄賬戶匯款，他們代表我與債權(quán)人協(xié)商。達(dá)成協(xié)議后，用我存入的儲蓄金還款并收取傭金。雖然債務(wù)仍在，但有專業(yè)人士處理讓我稍感輕松。
美國個人債務(wù)問題愈演愈烈，信用卡債務(wù)和學(xué)生貸款的激增讓許多美國人陷入難以擺脫的財(cái)務(wù)困境。隨著美國對全球發(fā)動關(guān)稅戰(zhàn)，物價上漲將進(jìn)一步加劇民眾的償債壓力。普通美國人想要擺脫債務(wù)深淵，面臨的困境或?qū)⒂l(fā)嚴(yán)峻。
編輯：左卓
見習(xí)編輯：裴禧盈
來源：The Cut
China Daily精讀計(jì)劃
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