Municipalities with the most debt settlement
More and more people need debt settlement in order to reduce money owed, but there is disagreement about what is the cause of the development.
According to a survey conducted by Perx, who offers crowd funded consumer loans, the number of debt arrangements increases after a drop from 2010 to 2014. The increase is in spite of historically low mortgage rates and dropping unemployment figures.
– The explanation is probably that we acquire both more and more expensive debt, according to Perx.
A debt settlement can give you postponement on paying all or part of your debt, the creditors may give you a full or partial waiver of interest or costs, or your debt may be completely or partially nullified.
In short, this is a scheme that helps those who fail to repay what they owe.
Not certain that consumer debt is the sole explanation of debt settlement
The development of debt settlement in Norway since 2010; Perx, who has collected the figures and made the graph, believes the increase we see now is due to increased consumer debt in the population. The Consumer Board, on the other hand, believes the drop from 2014 is caused by legislative changes and stricter requirements for debt settlement. Photo: Perx (screenshot).
While Perx explains the increase in the number of debt settlement, with Norwegians acquiring expensive consumer loans, where the interest rates can amount to more than NOK 50,000 on a NOK 300,000 loan, the Norwegian Consumer Board believes that the decline in debt settlement should be seen in conjunction with the fact that the regulations were altered in 2014.
Then the threshold for joining a public debt scheme was upped, which caused a drop in the number of debt settlement, according to Director of Finance, Jorge Jensen.
– It is also important to note that debt settlement is more closely linked to unsuccessful attempts to establish business activities than consumers who acquire too much debt, Jensen continues.
Jostedt in Perx says that the figures they have collected include both voluntary and compulsory debt arrangements, the former being the largest. A voluntary settlement is initially granted due to applications made for it by the consumer.
– Therefore, we believe that the increase which we experience is a clear indication that more people are struggling to handle their debt, she says to Dagbladet.
Debt settlement is no quick fix
The member of the Consumer Board emphasizes that the debt schemes act as a general settlement for debtors who have no chance of covering their debt in the near future.
By acquring a debt settlement, you commit to live frugally for several years to come, as well as to manage the debt you already have against parts of the debt being erased.
– It is not a simple quick fix for people facing debt problems, and my experience is that it’s not a walk in the park to be part of one, says Jensen.
People from Trøndelag on top
The survey is based on figures that Perx has obtained from Statistics Norway and the State Collection Agency, which shows how debt has evolved in different municipalities, the relative debt of households and how many debt schemes exist in each municipality.
The top ten municipalities with the highest number of debt settlement per capita
| Municipality, County | Population 17-> 66 | Settlements 2010 -> 2017 | Settlements per 1000 | % |
| Lebesby, Finnmark | 846 | 43 | 51 | 5 % |
| Verran, Trøndelag | 1 561 | 76 | 49 | 5 % |
| Flå, Buskerud | 669 | 31 | 46 | 5 % |
| Tjeldsund, Nordland | 751 | 32 | 43 | 4 % |
| Åmot, Hedmark | 2 835 | 107 | 38 | 4 % |
| Leka, Trøndelag | 319 | 12 | 38 | 4 % |
| Bygland, Aust-Agder | 778 | 28 | 36 | 4 % |
| Stor-Elvdal, Hedmark | 1 655 | 58 | 35 | 4 % |
| Modalen, Hordaland | 231 | 8 | 35 | 3 % |
As one can see, there are several counties represented on the list. Iveland is at the top. It is by the way the municipality that houses the Voss water bottling company.
People from Trøndelag (Trøndere) must most often get help with their debt, according to Perx. When looking at the number of debt settlements per thousand inhabitants between 2010 and 2018, the result shows that 18 of 23 municipalities in Trøndelag are above the Norwegian average of 13 per cent debt settlement.
Things are going well in South West Norway
On the other hand, the people from Rogaland seem to handle the debt well at present. In this county, there are relatively few debt settlements among the population.
Debt settlement distribution in Norway’s ten largest municipalities
| Municipality | Population 17-> 66 | Settlements 2010 -> 2017 | Settlements per 1000 | % |
| Fredrikstad | 51 063 | 822 | 16 | 2 % |
| Drammen | 44 132 | 634 | 14 | 1 % |
| Oslo | 464 950 | 5 309 | 11 | 1 % |
| Bergen | 187 598 | 2 015 | 11 | 1 % |
| Kristiansand | 58 263 | 570 | 10 | 1 % |
| Bærum | 77 353 | 652 | 8 | 1 % |
| Tromsø | 50 831 | 395 | 8 | 1 % |
| Trondheim | 128 534 | 866 | 7 | 1 % |
| Stavanger | 90 071 | 569 | 6 | 1 % |
| Sandnes | 49 551 | 319 | 6 | 1 % |
© NTB scanpix / #Norway Today
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