College Students and Credit Card Debt in Arizona
By: Max Gunderson | Posted: 24th September 2010
In the 2008-2009 academic year, 15,610 students graduated from Arizona State University, in Tempe, AZ. Many of Arizona State's recent graduates not only exit ASU with a degree but they also are the proud owners of new credit card debt that they obtained while attending Arizona's largest university. Can financial trouble be far behind?
The amount of credit card debt owed by a "typical" college student continues to increase. Over 67% of undergraduate students claim to have at least one open credit card account. Many have more open accounts. A student graduating from college has on average between $3500 and $5000 of credit card debt. Many of these students owe much more.
Credit card companies count on college students at schools like Arizona State, University of Arizona in Tucson, and Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff to make money, preying on their financial inexperience. From the day they enroll, students become potential targets of credit card companies. Credit card companies look at these new students as a low credit risk as many have little or no current debt. The new students are young, financially irresponsible, and far from credit wise. Many of these students have never held full-time jobs, or work only during the summer.
There is a definite trend with credit card companies to market credit cards to these college students. Many college campuses, like ASU, UofA and NAU, allow credit card companies to market their credit cards on campus. Other ways that credit card companies market their credit cards to college students is to offer incentives to fraternities, sororities, and various campus organizations in exchange for these organizations signing up fellow students for new credit card accounts.
If you are a current college student at Arizona State University in Tempe, near Phoenix, the University of Arizona in Tucson, Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff or another college in the State of Arizona with more credit card debt than you can handle, consult an attorney who specializes in bankruptcy law. An experienced Arizona Bankruptcy attorney will know the best way to eliminate the credit card debt you gained at school and allow you to concentrate on the degree that you earned at school.
Predatory Lending, Preying on Arizona College Students and Chapter 7 Bankruptcy
The increasing number of college students obtaining credit cards goes hand in hand with the fact that people in their early 20's are among the fastest growing group of people filing for bankruptcy nationwide. One of the fastest growing groups of bankruptcy filers in Arizona are college students and people in their early 20's. Many college students worry that if they file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy that they will never be able to get another credit card. This is just not the case as most people who file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy see a flood of credit card offers soon after they file.
Many college students in Arizona are on their own for the first time. These college students at institutions such as ASU, UofA and NAU are experiencing managing their own money for the first time. Managing money is something that most everybody struggles with. Even people experienced in handling money find it more difficult to keep track of credit card purchases than purchases made with cash, checks or debit cards. The convenience of their new credit card can quickly lead Arizona college students down the road of financial ruin from Flagstaff to Tempe to Tucson.
Credit cards companies make their money off of overlooked, late payments, high interest rates, and recently increased minimum payments. They prey of college kids and count on inexperienced credit holders (like college students) to make mistakes, not pay their bills on time, and to over-spend what they can really afford. These factors make owning a credit card even more difficult, especially to college students and other new credit card owners. The credit card bills in the long run, become less manageable than the college student initially expected they would be.
It is a common misconception that if you’re currently enrolled in college or a school program, you’re not allowed to file for bankruptcy. This is just not the case. Current federal Bankruptcy laws only require that a person considering declaring bankruptcy be at least 18 years old, be a resident of Arizona or the state where you are filing for the majority of the last 180 days, and be capable of making the choice to declare bankruptcy voluntarily.
If you are a current college student at Arizona State University in Tempe, near Phoenix, the University of Arizona in Tucson, Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff or another college in the State of Arizona with more credit card debt than you can handle, consult an attorney who specializes in bankruptcy law. An experienced Arizona Bankruptcy attorney will know the best way to eliminate the credit card debt you gained at school and allow you to concentrate on the degree that you earned at school.
If you have questions about the process of filing bankruptcy in Arizona please contact the affordable bankruptcy lawyers and attorneys near Phoenix and Tucson at the Bornmann Law Group, PLLC (480) 263-1699 or (520) 306-8729. Call us to set up a free initial consultation, discuss your legal options and filing Bankruptcy in Arizona. With locations in Phoenix, Chandler, Tucson, and Flagstaff we are an Arizona debt relief agency and help people file for bankruptcy under the Bankruptcy Code. Don’t lose everything. Get a "Fresh Start" today. Visit our website at http://www.bankruptcy-az.com for more information or email us at bornmannlawgroup@gmail.com.This article is free for republishing
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Tags: inexperience, credit card debt, fellow students, credit risk, time jobs, state of arizona, credit card accounts, financial trouble, college campuses, proud owners, recent graduates, arizona state university