Is the era of easy credit over for the long haul?

By ADAM GELLER AP NATIONAL WRITER ADVANCE FOR MONDAY OCT. 13; graphic shows percentage of Americans by the value of their debt; An inflatable gorilla beckoned from the roof of Don Brown Chevrolet in St. Louis, servers doled out free bowls of pasta and a salesman urged potential customers to "come on up under the canopy and put your hands on" a new set of wheels. But sitting across from a salesman in a quiet back room, Adrian Clark could see it would not be nearly that easy. This was the ninth or tenth dealership for Clark, a steamfitter looking for a car to commute to a new job. Every one offered a variation on the discouragement he was getting here: Without $1,000 for a downpayment, no loan. "It's just rough times right now," Clark said. "Rough times." For Clark, and for a nation of consumers heavily dependent on credit,... [read full story]