Americans Taking on Debt for Summer Travel Season

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
Let's welcome NBC Radio is Aaron Reyaleback to the program eron good morning,
Good morning, how are you well. Good to have you back here.
Happy Independence Day ahead of time.And likewise, this is my favorite holiday
of the year. I I justlove it. Number one. Yeah,
that's right. It's low pressure,high rewards weather. Yeah, I love

(00:24):
it. I think i'd go it'sin the top three, top three Christiness.
I know, Christmas is always aThanksgiving pennial favorite. The Thanksgiving weekend
is almost unparalleled. I actually agreewith that, so I'm a little reverse.
It goes Thanksgiving and fourth of Julya bye for first position. But

(00:45):
I agree with you completely. It'spretty great. Yeah. And this year
actually, with the fourth falling onThursday, we kind of get a Thanksgiving
weekend four days all right. Speakingof the fourth of July, a lot
of people were hearing record numbers ofpeople traveling. But if you're here and
the people are spending, they're goingin the debt to finance their summer travel.
Huh yeah. Thirty six percent ofAmericans say they plan to take on

(01:08):
debt in order to travel. Thisis according to bank Rate. But of
those summer travelers, twenty six percentare using credit cards to do it,
and credit cards are charging about twentypercent right now. So this is very
worrisome to experts because it really representsthe kind of debt that can linger.
It's very expensive debt. And whenpeople go on vacation, they look at

(01:32):
money like monopoly money. Myself included. This is not like a judgmental thing.
You're just like, it's vacation,we'll figure it out later. It's
an easy way to find yourself ina pickle very quickly. Well, and
are going in the debt. Alot of people are just in general to
finance necessities. And you know,you think about young families. What that

(01:53):
one stat I heard if you havetwo kids, For a lot of people,
if you have two kids in daycareamount to as much or more than
your mortgage every much. Oh letme be clear, I do have two
children. Our childcare bill is biggerthan our mortgage. Like this is just
the way it is. And Ithink that this is such a departure because
then if you look at my father'sgeneration, the baby Boomers, then it's

(02:15):
like, oh, just save upand you can make it. And I'm
like, no, no, no, this isn't the matter like we're not
making it rain or living frivolously.It's just the cost of living. All
of the stuff is so expensive.I'm preaching in the choir. Everyone knows
this. This isn't like new stuff, but inflation has hit everyone. And
then you also see insurance premiums goup. So the idea that you know,

(02:36):
for something that isn't absolutely necessary tospend so much money and going to
debt on you know, it's not. Listen, life is not all about
the grind. It really isn't,but the grind becomes a lot grindier if
you're trying to work off debt fromvacation. It doesn't feel awesome. And
then beyond that, it's interesting tosee the different generations justification for accumulating vacation,

(03:00):
like millennials and gen zers they areactually the demographic cohort that are most
likely to go into debt. Butgen Zers and millennials have little kids and
they often say, you know,this important trip feels like a seminal part
of childhood. I don't want tomiss that. Boomers they'll be like times
a chicken, let's let's go dothe thing. And then if you're really
young, you're like you only liveonce. Everyone has a different reason for

(03:22):
that vacation, and I'm not sayingany of them are wrong, but just
remember it's a justification of Hey,speaking of oz, we were Fourth of
July a minute ago, probably thebiggest barbecue day that Memorial Day of the
year, and there's something signific goinghappening in the BBQ industry. Huh yep.
Indeed, So the Fourth of Julycookout this year is likely to cost

(03:44):
about seventy one dollars for ten guests. It's up thirty from twenty nineteen to
five percent from last year. Butif you were ever ever looking for a
grill, a fancy new grill,this might be the summer to get it.
And the reason is everyone got agrill during the pandemic, like all
the people. Now you have thesemarket leaders, like the high end manufacturers

(04:06):
like Trager, which was such apandemic Darling. If you just look at
the numbers, they're grill sales lastquarter seventy six million compared to twenty twenty
one same quarter one hundred and fiftysix million. Long story, short grills
have about a five year life cycledepending on how often you use it,
and everyone got a grill about twoyears ago, so they're still humming.

(04:28):
And this is what this has alot of manufacturers offering big incentives and if
you can hold on to your grilluntil the end of the season, yeah
that's right. Good year to getone. That's the time to buy it.
I saw a trager the other dayfor like four thousand dollars. Are
you kidding me? What? Yeah? It was a big honker, I
gotta say, I mean it wasit. It had everything, had room

(04:48):
for a copilo when you're at thesea level. It was unbelievable. Aaron,
great, thanks always for being here. I have a wonderful holiday.
Likewise, have a wonderful fourth ofJily.