Household debt in Europe during the 2008-2013 recession had a big impact on the economy. By looking at mortgage data, researchers found that when people borrowed more money, the economy suffered. Regions with higher household debt saw bigger drops in output and jobs after 2008. The biggest increase in debt was seen in low and middle-income households. This suggests that easy access to credit led to higher debt and house prices, which hurt the economy when things went bad.