 TITLE: Growth of Personal Loan Debt Slows Amid Pandemic CONTENT: Overall Personal Loan Debt in the U.S. Grew in 2020\n---------------------------------------------------\nThough the nation's outstanding personal loan debt grew in 2020, the rate at which the balances expanded was cut in half—shrinking from 12% growth in 2019 to just 6% in 2020, according to Experian data. This slowing marks a deviation from a six-year-long trend that saw personal loans become the fastest-growing type of consumer debt in the country. As of 2020, however, student loan and mortgage balances grew at a rate faster than personal loans, increasing by 24% and 7%, respectively.\nBeginning in 2009—on the heels of the Great Recession—personal loan balances began to shrink and continued to do so until 2014. This period of decline resulted in overall personal loan debt falling from $259 billion in 2008 to $171 billion in 2013. Outstanding personal loan balances began to rebound in 2014, and personal loans became one of the fastest-growing debt categories leading up to 2020.\nIn Q3 2020, overall personal loan debt reached a new all-time high of $323 billion. This represented a 6%—$18 billion—increase from $305 billion in 2019. Despite the growing balances, personal loan debt still represents only 2% of overall debt in the U.S., ahead of only retail credit cards in terms of total balance.\nSource: Experian END