Savings efforts among consumers remain weak
by June 24, 2013 9:33 am 93 views
Fewer than one in four Americans (24%) have enough savings to cover at least six months of expenses, according to new research from Bankrate.com.
Exactly half have less than three months of expenses saved up, and 27% have no emergency savings. These numbers have barely budged in the past three years.
They have improved a bit from the pre-recession days of 2006, when only 39% of Americans had at least three months of expenses saved up. But that modest progress isn’t nearly enough, according to Greg McBride, a senior financial analyst with Bankrate.com.
“We measure five key components of Americans’ financial security each month, and we routinely find that savings is the weakest area,” he said. “People who are less comfortable with their savings now versus a year ago outnumber people who are more comfortable by a margin of nearly two-to-one. That’s especially jarring since people are feeling much more optimistic about other aspects of their finances.”
Bankrate.com’s Financial Security Index reached a new high of 102.7 in June. This is the fourth consecutive month in which consumers have indicated improved financial security compared to the previous year. Specifically, consumers currently say their net worth is higher, they feel more secure in their jobs, they’re more comfortable with their debt and their overall financial situations are better.
• Only 17% report lower net worth than last year, the lowest since polling began in Dec. 2010.
• Those feeling more secure in their jobs outnumber those feeling less secure by a two-to-one margin. Merely 13% of employed Americans feel less secure in their jobs compared to one year ago, a new low.
• Some 30% of Americans feel more comfortable with their debt compared to one year ago, a new high.
• And just one in five Americans feel their overall financial situation is worse now than one year ago, tying the lowest reading.
The survey was conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates International (PSRAI) and can be seen in its entirety here.