A new report from the American Bankers Association finds delinquencies are up for seven of the eight types of consumer loans tracked by the ABA. Consumers are feeling stretched at a time when the economy is considered to be healthy. There was also a recent stunner of a story in the New York Times that explained that foreclosures are up big time all around the country. Cities like New Orleans and Detroit have been hit hard because of Hurricane Katrina and the failure of the auto industry, respectively. But Clark’s hometown of Atlanta is also facing a crisis because of option payment loans where the loan balance actually rises over time. So instead of paying down your home debt, the balance keeps going up. It’s comparable to a homeowner paying like a renter. You don’t develop equity and you have to shell out big bucks for all the routine upkeep of a home.