Credit counseling service sees huge surge in calls during holiday shopping kickoff

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While a record-breaking number of Americans engaged in shopping over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, nonprofit financial counselors also saw a significant increase in requests for debt counseling during the holiday shopping season kick-off.

Money Management International (MMI), one of the largest non-profit credit counseling agencies in the U.S., says it received a 44% year-over-year increase in the number of consumers seeking its services during the week of Thanksgiving, and a staggering 80% spike in calls on Cyber Monday.

While Americans shopped in record numbers during the unofficial launch of the holiday shopping season, a major credit counseling service received a significant rise in inquiries. (Robert Nickelsberg/Getty Images / Getty Images)

Thomas Nitzsche, MMI's senior director for media and brand, told FOX Business the surge of inquiries over the past few weeks is very unusual, because this is typically the time of year that the agency sees a decrease in new clients.

In a typical year, he explained, MMI sees a notable decrease in calls during November and December, with an uptick in January and February as the holiday bills hit and folks set financial resolutions for the new year.

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But the recent surge is not entirely surprising, Nitzsche says, pointing out there has also been a steady increase in the number of consumers seeking credit counseling over the last 18 months across almost all age groups. In addition, the average level of total unsecured debt among consumers seeking debt help