STAFFORD, Texas, July 30, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — New mid-year data from nonprofit Money Management International (MMI) shows that financial stress among American households continued to deepen in the first half of 2026, with counseling volume rising 9.5% year over year and average unsecured debt among new clients climbing to nearly $40,000.
The findings, drawn from more than 40,000 clients served through June 2026, reveal a broad-based pattern of rising debt across every generation, and an emerging shift in how Americans are finding help, with thousands of clients navigating directly from ChatGPT to MMI in 2026, including a threefold increase since ChatGPT announced its new personal finance experience in May.
“The fact…