Also, remember that just because you have a mortgage doesn’t necessarily mean you are in debt. I have a mortgage on my home, but I could also liquidate my savings to pay it off, if the need ever arose.

Of course that’s only because I too had a healthy college fund, which I used to pay for college, to pay for a car after college, and even to immediately pay off some credit cards once or twice.

Good post on a sometimes touchy subject!

Approximately 40 percent of credit card users paid their balance in full each month in 2006 (Source: Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia)

The majority of U.S. households have no credit card debt. About a quarter have no credit cards, and an additional 30 percent of households pay off their balances every month. (Source: Federal Reserve)

One in six families with credit cards pays only the minimum due every month. (Sources: American Bankers Association, Federal Reserve)

On average, today’s consumers are paying their bills on time, with less than half of all consumers have ever been reported as 30 or more days late on a payment. Only three out of 10 have ever been 60 or more days overdue on any credit obligation. Seventy-seven percent of all consumers have never had a loan or account that was 90+ days overdue, and less than 20 percent have ever had a loan or account closed by the lender due to default. (Source: myfico.com)

Twenty-nine percent of low and middle income households with credit card debt reported that medical expenses contributed to their current balances. (Source: http://www.demos.org)

I know how you feel about being proud but not wanting to talk about it. Only once was I not able to pay off my credit card when it was due (before I had an emergency fund, I took a sudden vacation for a friend’s somewhat sudden destination wedding–but before I accepted, I made sure I could pay it off quickly), and the only other debt I’ve had is two car loans and a college loans–which were paid off within a year by living with my parents after I started my first job. I’m very fortunate I was able to do that–as well as have my parents pay quite a bit of my first two years of schooling. So I’ve never been in deep debt, and I hope other than “good” debt, I never am in debt (debt makes me nervous, so I’m not sure there’s any such thing as good debt!).