Housing and economy analyst Michael Bordenaro is warning that Americans are carrying more debt than ever before, and a growing number of households are now starting to fall behind on the bills that keep daily life moving.
In his recent video, Bordenaro said the pressure is showing up across personal loans, credit cards, auto debt, mortgages, student loans, and even basic utility bills, with many families reaching a point where one unexpected expense can throw the whole budget into crisis.
According to Bordenaro, Consumer Affairs data shows the average individual debt load in the United States has more than doubled in nominal terms since 2003, climbing from $32,840 to $63,200 as of 2025. He noted that the figure is likely even higher now in 2026, while the average individual income sits around $45,256.
That gap, he said, leaves many Americans with a debt-to-income ratio close to 140%, which means their debt burden is far larger than what they earn in a year.
Debt Is Outrunning Income
Bordenaro said the national debt picture becomes more troubling when it is compared with personal income, because the average American is now carrying more debt than their annual individual earnings.
He stressed that this is different from household income, which he said is closer to about $84,000 a year at the median level. On an individual basis, however, the numbers show a much tighter squeeze.
“When you’re already stretched that thin, anything that comes up, a car repair, a doctor’s visit, any sort of financial hiccup, people end up losing everything from this,” Bordenaro said.
He also pointed out that when the numbers are adjusted for inflation, average personal debt has only risen about 10%, but said that does not make the problem feel any easier for people living through it. In his view, the real issue is that wages have not kept up with inflation and the cost of basic living.
That is a key part of the story, because debt does not hurt only because the number is large. It hurts because the monthly payments arrive at the same time as rent, groceries, insurance, fuel, medical bills, and rising utilities, leaving families with fewer places to cut.
Bordenaro argued that the pressure may eventually force a larger economic reset, whether through falling prices or some form of government support, because many people are reaching a point where normal life is no longer affordable on normal wages.
Some States Are Feeling It More Than Others
The financial strain is not hitting every state the same way, according to Bordenaro.
He said Consumer Affairs found Utah to be the most debt-burdened state in the country, which surprised him because he expected the top spots to belong to more obviously expensive states such as Florida, California, or New York.
In Utah, he said, the average resident has a debt-to-income ratio of 199%, meaning the average debt load is roughly twice the person’s annual income.
“Think about that,” Bordenaro said, asking how long a household can keep operating when debt is running at nearly double income.
At the same time, he said Utah residents appear to be keeping up with payments better than people in many other places. He cited mortgage delinquencies of 0.7%, auto debt delinquencies around 3%, credit card delinquencies at about 9.5%, and student loan delinquencies at 5.9%.
That makes Utah an unusual case: heavily burdened by debt, but not yet showing the same level of payment breakdown seen elsewhere.
Bordenaro said Louisiana ranks second among the most debt-burdened states, with a debt-to-income ratio of 136% and the highest mortgage delinquency rate at 1.83%. Nevada came in third, he said, with a debt-to-income ratio of 167% and a credit card delinquency rate of 16.3%, the highest share of seriously past-due credit card debt.
Mississippi, he added, has one of the lowest average individual debt balances in the country, yet still ranks eighth among the most debt-burdened states because of student loan distress. According to Bordenaro, 13% of student loan balances there are 90 days past due.
These state differences matter because they show that the debt problem is not just about how much people owe. It is also about income, local costs, job markets, and whether people have enough cash left each month to stay current.
Utility Bills Are Becoming A Breaking Point
Bordenaro said one of the most alarming signs is the rise in unpaid utility bills, because electricity, gas, and water are not optional expenses.
He said average monthly energy bills rose from $196 in March 2022 to $265 by June 2025, a 35% increase. He argued that this increase has outpaced the official inflation rate and has become another major reason families are falling behind.
According to Bordenaro, an analysis by the Century Foundation found that the average overdue utility balance is now $789, up from $597 in 2022. He also said about 5% of American households have utility debt so far past due that it may soon be sent to collections, amounting to roughly 14 million people.
In some parts of the country, the numbers are even more painful. Bordenaro said average monthly utility costs in the Northeast are $300 or more, making it the priciest region, while overdue utility balances are above $1,500 along parts of the Atlantic coast and in parts of the Midwest.
This is where the debt story becomes more immediate. A missed credit card payment can hurt a credit score, but a shut-off notice can change how a household lives day to day.
Bordenaro said 13.5 million residential electricity customers had their service shut off in 2024, with Texas recording more than 3 million residential electricity disconnects, the most in the country. He also cited federal energy data showing that utility companies sent 94.9 million final notices to residential electricity customers in 2024, warning them to pay or lose service.
That number does not mean 94.9 million people lost electricity, but it does show how many households were close enough to the edge to receive a final warning. It also helps explain why some people may be choosing which bill to miss, paying the utility company while falling behind on rent, car payments, credit cards, or other debts.
Rising Electricity Demand Could Make It Worse
Bordenaro said the utility issue is not likely to fade quickly, because electricity demand is expected to keep rising while the grid faces pressure from new data centers, electric vehicles, and policies that push more appliances away from gas and toward electricity.
He said residential electricity prices rose 33% from 2019 to 2025, and he pointed to projections that electricity consumption could rise nearly 40%, or possibly 50%, by 2050.
Bordenaro argued that the growth of data centers is one of the main reasons electric bills have climbed, because they consume large amounts of power and add stress to infrastructure that he believes is not ready for the coming demand.
He also said some workers in the utility industry have contacted him to say the United States does not have the infrastructure needed for the level of electricity demand now being created.
That may sound like a technical issue, but the result is very personal. When infrastructure has to be expanded, someone pays for it, and those costs often move through to ordinary customers in the form of higher bills.
For households already behind, even a smaller monthly increase can be enough to push them from barely managing into default.
A Warning Sign For The Housing Market
Bordenaro said missed utility payments can also serve as an early warning sign for the housing market.
In his view, when people can no longer keep the lights on, that may signal there is no longer enough room in the budget to absorb mortgage payments, property taxes, insurance, repairs, or other housing costs.
He said a missed utility bill can be “the last straw” before some homeowners begin defaulting on their mortgages, especially if they are already stretched thin by debt and inflation.
That connection is important because housing problems usually build slowly before they show up as foreclosures. A household may first use credit cards to cover groceries, then skip a smaller bill, then fall behind on utilities, and only later miss a mortgage payment.
Bordenaro’s warning is that the early cracks are already visible.
Bordenaro Points To The National Debt, Too
Bordenaro also connected household debt to the country’s broader fiscal picture, arguing that the federal government is following a similar pattern of borrowing more than it can comfortably support.
He said government debt held by the public recently reached $31.27 trillion, while gross domestic product over a similar period was estimated at $31.22 trillion. He compared that to household debt-to-income ratios, saying the country itself is now carrying a debt burden that raises long-term concerns.
He also said the last time the debt-to-GDP ratio was this bad was after World War II, when it reached 106% in 1946, and he warned that public debt could continue rising sharply over the coming decades.
Bordenaro said interest now makes up 14% of U.S. government spending, which he views as a sign that the debt problem is becoming more difficult to manage.
He tied that back to inflation and the Federal Reserve, saying the Fed has held interest rates steady even though inflation remains above its 2% target. In Bordenaro’s view, inflation is not going away, and the Fed has limited power over some of the forces keeping prices high, including energy costs, tariffs, and global conflict.
The Pressure Is Reaching Ordinary Households
Bordenaro closed with a blunt message for viewers: he does not expect life to become cheaper or easier in the near future, and he believes many people will need to raise their incomes to keep up.
He suggested that people look for ways to increase income by 20% or 30%, whether through extra work, a side business, or another source of cash flow. While he acknowledged that inflation is hitting almost everyone, he argued that the response to those pressures will make the biggest difference for individual households.
That advice may sound harsh to people who already feel exhausted, but it reflects the mood of the broader report. Bordenaro’s point is that waiting for prices to fall or wages to suddenly catch up may not be enough.
The more troubling takeaway is that millions of Americans are not just carrying high debt on paper. They are starting to miss payments on the basic systems that support ordinary life, from credit cards and student loans to electricity and water.
If those missed payments keep spreading, the debt problem may no longer look like a private struggle inside individual households. It may start looking like a warning sign for the economy as a whole.
Mark grew up in the heart of Texas, where tornadoes and extreme weather were a part of life. His early experiences sparked a fascination with emergency preparedness and homesteading. A father of three, Mark is dedicated to teaching families how to be self-sufficient, with a focus on food storage, DIY projects, and energy independence. His writing empowers everyday people to take small steps toward greater self-reliance without feeling overwhelmed.
