{"id":136915,"date":"2021-04-12T13:30:00","date_gmt":"2021-04-12T19:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/?p=135136"},"modified":"2023-03-29T09:05:17","modified_gmt":"2023-03-29T15:05:17","slug":"charting-americas-debt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/charting-americas-debt","title":{"rendered":"Here&#8217;s What $27 Trillion In Debt Looks Like"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n      <iframe loading=\"lazy\" frameborder=\"0\" height=\"200\" scrolling=\"no\" src=\"https:\/\/playlist.megaphone.fm?e=BIGPOC4585851415&#038;light=false\" width=\"100%\"><\/iframe>  \n\n\n\n\n<p>In case you\u2019ve had your head comfortably situated beneath the sand for a very long time now, you are well aware that the United States is awash in debt. Government debt, municipal debt, corporate debt, personal debt, mortgage debt, student loan debt, car debt, and credit card debt. Etcetera.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, for this post, we\u2019ll focus exclusively on the massive federal government debt. A debt that, especially with the massive deficit the United States ran in 2020 (a cool <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thebalance.com\/us-deficit-by-year-3306306\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">$3.7 trillion<\/a>), is becoming quite a problem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<div id=\"hero-block_62df1a82bfc88\" class=\"first:mt-0 hero-block py-4    has-background has-slate-200-background-color has-text-color has-theme-gold-color\">\n    <div\n        class=\" flex flex-wrap lg:flex-nowrap max-w-screen-xl mx-auto px-4 relative lg:items-center \">\n\n        <div class=\"relative z-30 w-full \">\n            <main class=\"py-4\">\n                \n\n<p class=\"has-slate-800-color has-text-color has-large-font-size\" style=\"font-style:normal;font-weight:800\">The Money Podcast<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"my-3 md:my-5 lg:my-8 has-slate-900-color has-text-color\" style=\"font-size:16px\">Kickstart your personal finance journey with Scott and Mindy as they break down the good, bad, and ugly of people\u2019s personal money stories. From interviews with entrepreneurs and business owners to breakdowns of listener finances, you\u2019ll get actionable advice on how to get out of debt and grow your money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div id=button-custom-event-block_65400b52d0a76 class='button-custom-event'>\n      <a href=\"https:\/\/link.chtbl.com\/Money\" x-on:click=\"window.analytics.track(&#039;Money Podcast Blog CTA Click&#039;, {\n      referrer: &#039;https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/charting-americas-debt&#039;,\n    });\" class=\" btn-shape inline-block no-underline has-background has-theme-slate-dark-background-color has-text-color has-white-color\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Listen Now<\/a>\n  <\/div>\n\n            <\/main>\n        <\/div>\n\n                <div class=\" first:mt-0 relative h-full lg:flex lg:items-center\">\n            <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"object-cover w-full relative z-20 my-0  shadow-xl rounded-md hidden lg:block\" src=\"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/BP_Money_podcast_square-1024x1024-1-e1660861377128.jpeg\" alt=\"\" title=\"\">\n        <\/div>\n            <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-css-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Charting America&#8217;s debt<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.visualcapitalist.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Visual Capitalist<\/a> has released <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visualcapitalist.com\/americas-debt-27-trillion-and-counting\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">another analysis<\/a> filled with their usual nifty visuals that puts the sheer quantity of the government\u2019s rapidly increasing debt into perspective.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/debt-1024x620.png\" alt=\"\" title=\"\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The rapidly climbing chart actually looks better than it is because, as you can see, 2020 is broken out into quarters and doesn\u2019t even go all the way until the end of the year. Indeed, the chart appears to be exponential, which is not a good thing when it comes to debt. After all, what can\u2019t go on forever, doesn\u2019t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At least regarding the deficit, however, things are projected to improve and get back to a more \u201cnormal\u201d deficit. Unfortunately, it is still not projected to get anywhere near a balanced budget anytime soon. Indeed, over the past 35 years, we only had a positive surplus for a very short while in the late &#8217;90s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/spending-and-revenue-1024x655.png\" alt=\"\" title=\"\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The debt, on the other hand, has grown enormously both in real terms and as a percentage of GDP. And Visual Capitalist notes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote><p>\u201cU.S. debt was relatively moderate between 1994 to 2007, averaging 60% of GDP over the timeframe. This took a drastic turn during the Global Financial Crisis, with debt climbing to 95% of GDP by 2012.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<blockquote><p>\u201cSince then, America\u2019s debt has only increased in relative size. In April 2020, with the COVID-19 pandemic in full force, it reached a record 122% of GDP. This may sound troubling at first, but there are a few caveats.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>The government debt has effectively doubled over the past 15 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And of course, as every borrower knows all too well, this amount of debt comes with very large interest payments that continue year in and year out as the debt grows larger. \u201cFor FY2019, this was approximately $327 billion,\u201d per Visual Capitalist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Components of the federal debt<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The piece by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visualcapitalist.com\/americas-debt-27-trillion-and-counting\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Visual Capitalist<\/a> also notes where all of this spending goes. A full 62.2% of spending, or $2.735 trillion, goes to mandatory spending, including things like health programs ($1.1 billion), social security ($1 billion), and income security ($301 billion).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>30.4%, or $1.338 billion, goes to discretionary spending, which includes things like transportation ($100 billion) and education ($72 billion). But by far the most goes to the military, at $677 billion (which <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalpriorities.org\/campaigns\/us-military-spending-vs-world\/#:~:text=The%20U.S.%20outpaces%20all%20other,budgets%20around%20the%20world%2C%20combined.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">accounts for 37%<\/a> of the entire world&#8217;s military spending). And again, there\u2019s that pesky $327 billion that goes toward debt service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I should note that this doesn\u2019t include state and municipal government spending, which is where most of the spending for things like education comes from.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Revenue is a bit simpler (and smaller) and comes from the following sources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><tbody><tr><td><strong>Category<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Amount (USD billions)<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Percent of total revenues<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Individual income taxes<\/td><td>$1,732B<\/td><td>50%<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Payroll taxes<\/td><td>$1,247B<\/td><td>36%<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Corporate income taxes<\/td><td>$242B<\/td><td>7%<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Other<\/td><td>$104B<\/td><td>3%<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Excise taxes<\/td><td>$104B<\/td><td>3%<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Customs duties<\/td><td>$69B<\/td><td>2%<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Total revenues<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>$3,464B<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>100%<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Understanding federal spending<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Visual Capitalist also helps us visualize this mass of spending and where it goes\/comes from in another helpful chart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/spending-chrt.png\" alt=\"\" title=\"\"><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Visual Capitalist<a href=\"https:\/\/www.visualcapitalist.com\/americas-debt-27-trillion-and-counting\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"> concludes<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote><p>\u201cLooking beyond COVID-19, however, does reveal some warning signs. One frequent criticism of the ever-growing national debt is its associated interest costs, which could cannibalize investment in other areas. In fact, the effects of this dilemma are already becoming apparent. Over the past decade, the U.S. has spent more on interest than it has on programs such as veterans benefits and education.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>In my own judgment, we don\u2019t face a short-term crisis, but if interest rates rise, things could get very ugly and the government will likely have to raise taxes at the same time interest rates are climbing. In other words, a recession, and possibly a very bad one. By no means does this mean you should stop investing, but it should encourage a bit of caution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n  <div id=\"posts_lists-block_6064cf03b3512\" class=\"  my-10\">\n    <div class=\"\">\n      <!-- Column One -->\n      <div>\n                  <h2 class=\"mt-0 mb-1 js-toc-ignore\">\n            More on personal finance at BiggerPockets          <\/h2>  \n                  \n                  <div class=\"mt-1 mb-0 text-sm mb-2 excerpt\">\n            Strong personal finance and financial literacy lays the groundwork for much investing and business success. Here, you&#8217;ll find hundreds of articles written by personal finance experts on topics like saving, earning more, and investing. A strong knowledge of personal finance can seriously expedite your real estate investing career.\r\n\r\nA great credit score, some cash in the bank, and strong stable income can be invaluable assets for those looking to begin or add to their real estate portfolio. For a more in-depth\u00a0discussion and debate about best practices in personal finance, you may want to check out the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/forums\/519-personal-finance-discussion\" target=\"_blank\">Personal Finance Forum<\/a>.          <\/div>\n        \n                  <a href=\"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/category\/personal-finance\" class=\"no-underline text-themeBlue-medium hover:underline uppercase font-semibold text-sm\" target=\"_blank\">Personal Finance<\/a>\n        \n        <div class=\"grid grid-cols-1 gap-y-4 lg:gap-y-7 mt-5\">\n          \n<article \n\tid=\"post-183715\" \n\tclass=\"content-card mb-0 flex flex-col  post-183715 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-personal-finance\">\n\n\t<header class=\"entry-header\">\t\t\t\n\t\t<!-- Image -->\n        \t\t\t<a class=\"post-thumbnail\" href=\"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/do-your-rentals-make-enough-for-retirement\" target=\"_blank\" aria-hidden=\"true\" tabindex=\"-1\">\n\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"340\" height=\"225\" src=\"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/NC-home_canva-340x225.jpg\" class=\"size-card w-full  m-0 aspect-[68\/45] object-scale-down wp-post-image\" alt=\"Secure Your Future: Are Your Cash Flow Calculations Ready for Retirement?\" title=\"\">\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t        \n\n\t\t<!-- Content Wrapper -->\n\t\t<div class=\"py-4 \">\t\n                            <div class=\"flex gap-4 justify-between items-center\">\n                    <!-- Category  -->\n                                            <a href=\"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/category\/personal-finance\" class=\"transition-colors bg-themeBlue\/20 text-themeBlue-medium hover:bg-themeBlue hover:text-white px-2 py-1 mb-2 inline-block rounded-sm no-underline text-sm\" target=\"_blank\">Personal Finance<\/a>\n                    \n                                            <span class=\"text-sm text-gray-500 hidden lg:inline-block\">3 min read<\/span>\n                                    <\/div>\n            \n           <div class=\"flex gap-3 items-center my-2 flex-nowrap text-base\">\n                <!-- Avatar and Author Name -->\n                <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bp-wp-migration.s3.amazonaws.com\/author_avatars\/214306.jpg\" class=\"w-8 h-8 object-cover my-0 inline-block rounded-full\" alt=\"\" title=\"\"><span class='leading-snug text-slate-500 flex items-center'><span class='hidden whitespace-nowrap sm:inline-block md:hidden lg:inline-block pr-1'><span class='posted-on'><time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2025-07-08T07:29:01-06:00\">Jul 08, 2025<\/time><time class=\"updated\" datetime=\"2025-07-08T07:29:04-06:00\">Jul 08, 2025<\/time><\/span><\/span>&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/contributors\/whitneyhutten\" class=\"no-underline line-clamp-1\" target=\"_blank\">Whitney Hutten<\/a><\/span>            <\/div>\n\n            <!-- Post title -->\n\t\t\t<h2 class=\"entry-title js-toc-ignore mt-4 mb-0 text-xl leading-snug text-left\">\n\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/do-your-rentals-make-enough-for-retirement\" rel=\"bookmark\" class=\"whitespace-normal no-underline font-bold  text-slate visited:text-slate hover:text-themeBlue\" target=\"_blank\">\n\t\t\t\t\tSecure Your Future: Are Your Cash Flow Calculations Ready for Retirement?\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\n                        <p class=\"text-lg font-normal mt-3 text-slate-500 mb-1 line-clamp-3\">Retirement planning often feels like a checkbox exercise for high-income professionals and business owners. Work hard, save diligently, invest here and there\u2014done, right? But let me ask you this: Are&hellip;<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/header>\n     <footer class=\"flex justify-between mt-auto\">\n        <!-- Comment Count -->\n        \t\t<span class='flex items-center space-x-2 text-sm' x-cloak x-data='commentCount()' :class=\"parseFloat(commentCount) < 1 || commentCount == '' ? 'hidden' : 'flex'\">\n\t\t\n            <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"h-5 w-5 text-slate text-opacity-50\" fill=\"none\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" stroke=\"currentColor\">\n                <path stroke-linecap=\"round\" stroke-linejoin=\"round\" stroke-width=\"2\" d=\"M17 8h2a2 2 0 012 2v6a2 2 0 01-2 2h-2v4l-4-4H9a1.994 1.994 0 01-1.414-.586m0 0L11 14h4a2 2 0 002-2V6a2 2 0 00-2-2H5a2 2 0 00-2 2v6a2 2 0 002 2h2v4l.586-.586z\" \/>\n            <\/svg>\n\n            <span x-ref=\"comment_count\" class=\"disqus-comment-count text-slate text-opacity-80\" data-disqus-identifier=\"183715\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n        <\/span>\n\t    <\/footer>\n<\/article><!-- #post-183715 -->\n<article \n\tid=\"post-182657\" \n\tclass=\"content-card mb-0 flex flex-col  post-182657 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-personal-finance\">\n\n\t<header class=\"entry-header\">\t\t\t\n\t\t<!-- Image -->\n        \t\t\t<a class=\"post-thumbnail\" href=\"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/check-your-credit-card-statements-every-month\" target=\"_blank\" aria-hidden=\"true\" tabindex=\"-1\">\n\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"340\" height=\"225\" src=\"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/credit-cards-340x225.jpg\" class=\"size-card w-full  m-0 aspect-[68\/45] object-scale-down wp-post-image\" alt=\"Check Your Credit Card Statements EVERY Month\" title=\"\">\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t        \n\n\t\t<!-- Content Wrapper -->\n\t\t<div class=\"py-4 \">\t\n                            <div class=\"flex gap-4 justify-between items-center\">\n                    <!-- Category  -->\n                                            <a href=\"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/category\/personal-finance\" class=\"transition-colors bg-themeBlue\/20 text-themeBlue-medium hover:bg-themeBlue hover:text-white px-2 py-1 mb-2 inline-block rounded-sm no-underline text-sm\" target=\"_blank\">Personal Finance<\/a>\n                    \n                                            <span class=\"text-sm text-gray-500 hidden lg:inline-block\">3 min read<\/span>\n                                    <\/div>\n            \n           <div class=\"flex gap-3 items-center my-2 flex-nowrap text-base\">\n                <!-- Avatar and Author Name -->\n                <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/bp-wp-migration.s3.amazonaws.com\/author_avatars\/1687.jpg\" class=\"w-8 h-8 object-cover my-0 inline-block rounded-full\" alt=\"\" title=\"\"><span class='leading-snug text-slate-500 flex items-center'><span class='hidden whitespace-nowrap sm:inline-block md:hidden lg:inline-block pr-1'><span class='posted-on'><time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2025-05-08T12:18:29-06:00\">May 08, 2025<\/time><time class=\"updated\" datetime=\"2025-05-08T12:18:32-06:00\">May 08, 2025<\/time><\/span><\/span>&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/contributors\/mindyjensen\" class=\"no-underline line-clamp-1\" target=\"_blank\">Mindy Jensen<\/a><\/span>            <\/div>\n\n            <!-- Post title -->\n\t\t\t<h2 class=\"entry-title js-toc-ignore mt-4 mb-0 text-xl leading-snug text-left\">\n\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/check-your-credit-card-statements-every-month\" rel=\"bookmark\" class=\"whitespace-normal no-underline font-bold  text-slate visited:text-slate hover:text-themeBlue\" target=\"_blank\">\n\t\t\t\t\tCheck Your Credit Card Statements EVERY Month\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\n                        <p class=\"text-lg font-normal mt-3 text-slate-500 mb-1 line-clamp-3\">Your credit card company very helpfully sends you a list of every single item charged to your credit card. This is called a statement, and it comes every month.&nbsp; Are&hellip;<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/header>\n     <footer class=\"flex justify-between mt-auto\">\n        <!-- Comment Count -->\n        \t\t<span class='flex items-center space-x-2 text-sm' x-cloak x-data='commentCount()' :class=\"parseFloat(commentCount) < 1 || commentCount == '' ? 'hidden' : 'flex'\">\n\t\t\n            <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"h-5 w-5 text-slate text-opacity-50\" fill=\"none\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" stroke=\"currentColor\">\n                <path stroke-linecap=\"round\" stroke-linejoin=\"round\" stroke-width=\"2\" d=\"M17 8h2a2 2 0 012 2v6a2 2 0 01-2 2h-2v4l-4-4H9a1.994 1.994 0 01-1.414-.586m0 0L11 14h4a2 2 0 002-2V6a2 2 0 00-2-2H5a2 2 0 00-2 2v6a2 2 0 002 2h2v4l.586-.586z\" \/>\n            <\/svg>\n\n            <span x-ref=\"comment_count\" class=\"disqus-comment-count text-slate text-opacity-80\" data-disqus-identifier=\"182657\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n        <\/span>\n\t    <\/footer>\n<\/article><!-- #post-182657 -->\n<article \n\tid=\"post-174193\" \n\tclass=\"content-card mb-0 flex flex-col  post-174193 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-biggerpocketsmoney category-personal-finance\">\n\n\t<header class=\"entry-header\">\t\t\t\n\t\t<!-- Image -->\n        \t\t\t<a class=\"post-thumbnail\" href=\"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/money-538\" target=\"_blank\" aria-hidden=\"true\" tabindex=\"-1\">\n\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"340\" height=\"225\" src=\"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/bpm-538-web-340x225.jpg\" class=\"size-card w-full  m-0 aspect-[68\/45] object-scale-down wp-post-image\" alt=\"Late Start, Early Retirement: The Huge Advantages of Investing Later in Life\" title=\"\">\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t        \n\n\t\t<!-- Content Wrapper -->\n\t\t<div class=\"py-4 \">\t\n                            <div class=\"flex gap-4 justify-between items-center\">\n                    <!-- Category  -->\n                                            <a href=\"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/category\/biggerpocketsmoney\" class=\"transition-colors bg-themeBlue\/20 text-themeBlue-medium hover:bg-themeBlue hover:text-white px-2 py-1 mb-2 inline-block rounded-sm no-underline text-sm\" target=\"_blank\">BiggerPockets Money Podcast<\/a>\n                    \n                                            <span class=\"text-sm text-gray-500 hidden lg:inline-block\">42 min read<\/span>\n                                    <\/div>\n            \n           <div class=\"flex gap-3 items-center my-2 flex-nowrap text-base\">\n                <!-- Avatar and Author Name -->\n                <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f12d39d967a9240ba1c9b64f33a1b09f594d85f2c5e7aae8170aa6e1f24bf8cf?s=150&#038;d=mp&#038;r=g\" class=\"w-8 h-8 object-cover my-0 inline-block rounded-full\" alt=\"\" title=\"\"><span class='leading-snug text-slate-500 flex items-center'><span class='hidden whitespace-nowrap sm:inline-block md:hidden lg:inline-block pr-1'><span class='posted-on'><time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2024-06-18T00:01:12-06:00\">Jun 18, 2024<\/time><time class=\"updated\" datetime=\"2024-06-20T10:35:54-06:00\">Jun 20, 2024<\/time><\/span><\/span>&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/contributors\/the-biggerpockets-money-podcast\" class=\"no-underline line-clamp-1\" target=\"_blank\">The BiggerPockets Money Podcast<\/a><\/span>            <\/div>\n\n            <!-- Post title -->\n\t\t\t<h2 class=\"entry-title js-toc-ignore mt-4 mb-0 text-xl leading-snug text-left\">\n\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/money-538\" rel=\"bookmark\" class=\"whitespace-normal no-underline font-bold  text-slate visited:text-slate hover:text-themeBlue\" target=\"_blank\">\n\t\t\t\t\tLate Start, Early Retirement: The Huge Advantages of Investing Later in Life\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\n                        <p class=\"text-lg font-normal mt-3 text-slate-500 mb-1 line-clamp-3\">Are you a late starter who wants to reach retirement (or early retirement)? Then we\u2019ve got just what you need! We\u2019re back with Bill Yount and Jackie Cummings Koski from&hellip;<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/header>\n     <footer class=\"flex justify-between mt-auto\">\n        <!-- Comment Count -->\n        \t\t<span class='flex items-center space-x-2 text-sm' x-cloak x-data='commentCount()' :class=\"parseFloat(commentCount) < 1 || commentCount == '' ? 'hidden' : 'flex'\">\n\t\t\n            <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"h-5 w-5 text-slate text-opacity-50\" fill=\"none\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" stroke=\"currentColor\">\n                <path stroke-linecap=\"round\" stroke-linejoin=\"round\" stroke-width=\"2\" d=\"M17 8h2a2 2 0 012 2v6a2 2 0 01-2 2h-2v4l-4-4H9a1.994 1.994 0 01-1.414-.586m0 0L11 14h4a2 2 0 002-2V6a2 2 0 00-2-2H5a2 2 0 00-2 2v6a2 2 0 002 2h2v4l.586-.586z\" \/>\n            <\/svg>\n\n            <span x-ref=\"comment_count\" class=\"disqus-comment-count text-slate text-opacity-80\" data-disqus-identifier=\"174193\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n        <\/span>\n\t    <\/footer>\n<\/article><!-- #post-174193 -->        <\/div>\n      <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n  <\/div>\n\n  ","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The United States is awash in debt\u2014trillions of dollars of debt, in fact. But understanding the sheer scope of that debt is difficult. Here are some charts to help you visualize.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1689,"featured_media":137143,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7119,5528],"tags":[672,2526,7234],"class_list":["post-136915","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-biggerpockets-daily","category-real-estate-news","tag-debt","tag-personal-finance","tag-real-estate-news-commentary"],"acf":[],"comment_count":0,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/136915","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1689"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=136915"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/136915\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/137143"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=136915"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=136915"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biggerpockets.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=136915"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}