Almost half of American credit cardholders carrying debt month to month

Credit card debt for Americans has been an exploding problem the last few years. Just in the last four, balances have risen 51 percent, and there is no real end in sight. Even worse, Americans are not making much effort to pay it off and are carrying that balance month-to-month.

A new survey from Bankrate shows that 48 percent of cardholders carry debt by the month, with over half of those being in debt for at least a year. There is plenty of reasons for that, most of which go hand-in-hand.

Financial analyst Ted Rossman says this number is not surprising, but it is still significant. Shocking enough though, it has actually improved since last year.

"High inflation, high interest rates, these have contributed to the issue these last few years," he says. "In total, Americans owe about $1.2 trillion on their credit cards."

Most people, at least responsible card holders, pay off the balance in full monthly. Which helps keep you out of debt. But there are also many people who go the route of minimum payments.

That though, when you factor in the average card interest rate of about 22 percent, creates more problems.

"The average American has a credit card balance of about $6,400...those minimum payments keep you in debt for 18 years, and cost you about $9,300 in interest," says Rossman.

The Federal Reserve has cut interest rates some in the last year, but that has not helped inflation much. Which is what most people are spending money on with their cards. Then you add in the emergency expenses, which throw things over the edge.

But both inflation and interest are so intertwined, that people cannot truly pay off the debt they have accrued.

"There are really two sides of the same coin. Inflation was a big reason why balances went up so much...it is not usually a vacation, or a shopping spree...it is usually practical stuff," he says. "But it is a tough cycle to break, and it all feeds off itself."

To help keep out of debt, or at least keep it low, Rossman says a good option are zero balance transfer cards.