How much credit card debt does the average American have?

Depending on your sources, Americans are either in a lot of credit card debt trouble, or not much at all. 

Bankrate.com lists 25 fascinating facts about personal debt, including:

Average per household debt in the U.S., not counting mortgage debt, is about $14,500 -- especially noteworthy because before the 1930s, most middle and working class people had no major debts. Banks would not lend to them; they rented their homes and if they did own a house, it was paid for as it was being built.

Some 40 percent of American families annually spend more than they earn.

Average credit card debt among all American households is $8,400.

Average card debt among people who have at least one card is $9,205 -- triple what it was in 1990.

But then, if you look at another source like MSN Money Central's The Truth About Credit Card Debt, you hear something completely different:

Only 29% of households owe $1,000 or more on their cards.

23.8% of American households have no credit cards at all -- no bank cards, no retail cards, nothing.

Another 31.2% of the households the Fed surveyed paid off their most recent credit card bills in full.

So who do we believe?  Are these facts even mutually exclusive?  It's possible that 60% of people have their debt affairs in order, and 40% are in various states of debt trouble, I suppose.  It's an interesting case of using numbers to tell different stories. 

In any case, it looks like all sides agree that average debt is rising, and that a certain percentage of people have incredible debt as it is.  But is that percentage 1% of all Americans, 10%, or more?  Are they the exception or the rule?  What's your experience?

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