Personal loans hit record high in SA - report
More South Africans than ever are turning to
personal and payday loans to cope with the rising cost of living.
A new report from DebtBusters showed that 91% of people applying for debt counselling early this year had a personal loan.
It is the highest on record.
DebtBusters' Benay Sager warned that while incomes have barely grown, electricity, petrol and food costs have surged, forcing many to cut essentials just to get by.
Despite improved consumer confidence, he said debt levels are rising fastest among top earners, who now spend 77% of their income repaying debt.
READ: South Africa’s unemployment rate hits 32.9%
"Basically, eight out of ten rands would need to be spent on debt repayments for the highest owners. And of course, we are talking about the population who applied for debt counselling," said Sager.
"So, it's a select population, but that shows you the pressure that group is under. And we've never seen a number as high as that before.
"So, I think that group is really under severe financial pressure."
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