Americans’ household debt has surged by $605B this year

It’s not happy holidays for thousands of New Yorkers.

And the damage is not hard to spot.

The huge surge in total US household debt — now a record $12.96 trillion and a harbinger of recession, some analysts say — is washing across New York with brutal consequences.

From extended lines of cash-strapped consumers at New York food pantries to a rise in mental health problems, the latest New York quarterly Fed data paints a dire picture: US household debt has grown by $605 billion in the past 12 months, with $116 billion, or nearly 1 percent, hitting in the latest quarter. Debt is mushrooming everywhere — on mortgages, student loans, auto loans. Credit card debt, meanwhile, has jumped by 3.1 percent in the latest quarter…

One expert says the credit card binge reminds him of the buildup to the financial crisis of 2007 and 2008. And this, say other experts, could be the telltale sign of an imminent recession.