An article in USA Today (More Americans’ credit scores sink to new lows) article details the downward spiral of consumer credit during what it calls the “Great Recession.”
From the article:
Figures provided by FICO show that 25.5% of consumers — nearly 43.4 million people — now have a credit score of 599 or below, marking them as poor risks for lenders. It’s unlikely they will be able to get credit cards, auto loans or mortgages under the tighter lending standards banks now use.