RETIRE LATER – 48% of working Americans surveyed in 2018 anticipate working past age 65, up from just 16% of workers who felt that way 30 years earlier (source: Employee Benefit Research Institute).
FREE AND CLEAR – 40% of American homeowners own their home free and clear of any debt. Of the 60% of homeowners with debt, the median outstanding balance is $126,000 (source: Census Bureau).
HOOKED ON – 27% of 1,000 Millennials surveyed in July 2018 spend more money on coffee each month than what they set aside and invested monthly for their eventual retirement (source: Lenedu.com).
CAN YOU SURVIVE? – Just 29% of working Americans surveyed in the summer 2018 had emergency savings set aside that would allow them to survive at least 6 months without any current cash flow from a job (source: Bankrate’s Financial Security Index).
LOW STANDARDS – Just 8% of 1,025 American adults surveyed in December 2018 described the “honesty and ethical standards “of members of Congress as “high” or “very high”, compared to 58% of those surveyed who believe lawmakers’ “honesty and ethical standards” are “low” or “very low” (source: Gallup).
NO BAILOUTS – No US bank failed in 2018, the first calendar year to achieve that result since 2006 (source: FDIC).
ON YOUR OWN – 58% of 1,054 small businesses surveyed in August and September 2018 (defined as American companies with 2-99 employees) do not offer any retirement benefits (source: LIMRA).
AMAZON IS DEADLY! – 5,524 brick-and-mortar retail stores closed nationwide in 2018, down from a record 8,139 closures in 2017. Another 2,187 retail stores have closed YTD through 2/09/19 (source: Coresight Research).
WEAN YOUR KIDS OFF THE PAYROLL – Six out of 10 (61 percent) parents with at least one adult child over 18 said they provided them with financial help, according to a Pew Research Center survey.
TOO MUCH DEBT – For the average American household, mortgage debt represents 67% of total household debt. (source: Federal Reserve Bank of New York).