South African Debt Pressure Index Shows 58.4% of Applicant Pay Going to Repayments
A new South African debt pressure index indicates that more than half of applicants are dedicating their entire take-home income to debt service, while a significant portion remains unaware of this status.
The South African Debt Pressure Index, released on 1 September by the debt counselling firm Debt Solutions 4U, reveals that nearly 60% of individuals seeking debt review allocate more than half of their net income to repayments. The data covers applicants surveyed between June and August, resulting in 58.4% committing the majority of their earnings to debt before other essentials like rent and food are covered. The index tracks specific applicants rather than general credit statistics. Approximately 51.3% of respondents were unsure if they were officially under debt review. When researchers cross-referenced these beliefs with the National Credit Regulator's register, one in four participants held incorrect information about their legal standing. In August alone, registrations for checks against the official register doubled compared to the previous month.
