Poll: Most Families Can’t Afford Emergency Expenses of $ 1,000

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A survey by Bankrate, a financial advisory group, in December found that less than 4 in 10 Americans can afford an unforeseen emergency or financial expense of $ 1,000 – so that device blowing, or that car in need of maintenance, or that ambulance ride, is not affordable for 60 percent of Americans, according to the study.

The survey of 1,000 American adults, according to CBS News, found that only 39% of people who responded to the national survey could handle a surprise bill at this price and that at least 38% of the total should use other means: 18% of respondents said they should finance the expense with a credit card. credit, and 12% said they would help pay it off with help from family and friends. Eight percent said they should take out a loan.

The study, for eagle-eyed followers of the pocket health of Americans, shouldn’t be all that surprising and is in keeping with the health of the US economy. A 2018 survey found that 40 percent of Americans couldn’t afford an emergency expense of more than $ 400.

With a unemployment over 6 percent, millions and millions of Americans out of work, and the general cost of living from student loans, rent, mortgages, education, child care and student loan debt, the precarious financial situations that American families had built for themselves seem to be collapsing.

But in fact, the long-running survey has been tracking family savings for seven years and suggests that the number of families that can afford such costs has remained stable, with something like 37 to 41 percent of families able to afford such costs. allow a calamity of $ 1,000 to any one over time, which could mean that our economy is fundamentally struggling beyond the current crisis.

The investigation also revealed thatOf course, the higher a family’s income, the more money it tends to have in savings – but not as much as you might think. 58 percent of households earning $ 75,000 or more can afford an emergency expense of $ 1,000, and only 21 percent of households earning less than $ 30,000 could afford this expense. Age, of course, matters too – 33% of millennials can afford the expense, while nearly half of Gen X and Baby Boomers can.

Going forward, those $ 2,000 stimulus checks could make a huge difference in the lives of Americans whose finances and savings are suffering because of COVID, but also, clearly, in general, because of wealth inequality. . Hopefully the Democratic House, Senate, and White House will make money in people’s hands a top priority so that they can stimulate the economy and get out of their financial situation.

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About Chuck Keeton

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