For many Americans, the sooner payday arrives, the better. A report from LendingClub shows that, as of June this year, 61% of adults are living paycheck to paycheck. This means they rely on these regular salaries to cover basic living expenses, with hardly any money left over.
A survey by Bankrate reveals that nearly three-quarters (72%) of Americans say they feel financially insecure given their current financial situation, with more than a quarter saying they may never feel financially secure. Ida Rademacher of the Aspen Institute states that if you feel extremely unstable financially, you are not alone, as there are actually millions of Americans struggling.
Worrying about financial status is not new (Principal Financial Group found as early as 2010 that 75% of employees were worried about their financial prospects). More importantly, a report released by the Economic Policy Institute in 2015 shows that since 1979, wages for the bottom 90% of income earners have only increased by 15%, while incomes for the top 1% of the affluent class have grown by 138%.
Currently, with high inflation and rising interest rates, the anxiety over income and financial security among the general public is becoming more evident. The latest data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that the average monthly income for ordinary workers, after taxes and benefits, is $3,308. However, data from Redfin show that as of June, the median housing cost for Americans was $2,029, which already accounts for about 61% of the median mobile income.
At the same time, a report from the Council for Community and Economic Research states that in the first quarter of 2023, the median mortgage payment for a 2,400 square foot house (about 353 square meters) was $1,957 per month, accounting for approximately 59% of the median mobile income, plus an average monthly expense of $690.75 for food and out-of-pocket medical costs. These totals already take up 85% of the actual median income for renters and nearly 83% for homeowners. Moreover, these expenses do not include other basic costs such as transportation, childcare, and debt payment.
Kamila Elliott, co-founder and CEO of Atlanta's Collective Wealth Partners and a certified financial planner, notes that inflation pressures and increased expenses have put tremendous stress on the average American, especially those who need to rent.
