“62% of Americans have less than $1,000 in savings”?

Last updated on: October 10, 2016 at 3:18 pm by Jane the Actuary

“62% of Americans have less than $1,000 in savings”? 2016-10-10T06:30:28-06:00 Jane the Actuary

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That’s what the USA Today reports, based on a survey by GoBankingRates.com.

Except that’s not actually what the survey revealed.

The survey asked a much more specific question: “How much money do you have saved in your savings account?”

And the answers were:

34% – $0
35% – more than $0 but less than $1,000
11% – from $1,000 to $5,000
4% – from $5,000 to $10,000
15% – $10,000 or more.

What’s more, far more women than men report a $0 balance — 42% vs. 28%. And as you might expect, young people and the poor are more likely to report a $0 balance.

But is this the end of the story? The question did not ask, “how much money do you have saved?” but very specifically asked about a “savings account,” which people can interpret in different ways.

Does a checking account merit a “yes”?

What about a quasi-bank account “reloadable debit card,” which is becoming a common means of paying low wage employees via direct deposit to the card, if the individual has a net credit on the card from month-to-month?

What about a 401(k) at work?

What about the proverbial cash under the mattress?

On the other hand, if you owe (say, in credit card debt) more than you have saved, how would you answer that question?

According to a recent Fortune article, the number of “unbanked” Americans, as calculated by the FDIC, has been declining, from 7.6% in 2009 (the first year the figure was calculated) to an even 7% in 2015. The FDIC also calculates a figure for “underbanked” Americans, which refers to individuals who have bank accounts but also use payday lenders, pawn brokers, etc., and that has been a consistent 20%.

Which means that it’s simply impossible for 34% of Americans to have a flat nothing in savings, in any form. You can’t have a bank account without any money in it at all. So don’t trust that figure, and look elsewhere for a meaningful analysis.

Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3AMoney_Cash.jpg; By Jericho [CC BY 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

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