All That Debt, And Soon, Nothing To Even Show For It

By Kleinheider Posted on April 30, 2008 at 2:01 pm

At an increasing pace, Americans are selling off their financed consumer goods at internet sites like Ebay and Craigslist in order to make ends meet now that home equity lines have run dry and credit cards are maxed to the max:

Economists say it is difficult to compare the selling trend with other tough times because the Internet, only in wide use since the mid-1990s, has made it much easier to unload goods than, say, at pawn shops.

But clearly, cash-strapped people are selling their belongings at bargain prices, with a flood of listings for secondhand cars, clothing and furniture hitting the market in recent months, particularly since January.

Earlier this decade, people tapped their inflated home equity and credit cards to fuel a buying binge. Now, slumping home values and a credit crisis have sapped sources of cash.

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