A survey revealed that 56.3 percent of Americans admit to having less than $1,000 in their checking and savings accounts combined. This statistic is terrifying because it likely means that millions of Americans are just one emergency, one unexpected expense, one job loss away from not being able to pay rent or their mortgage.
Best practices for financial savings
Personal financial management best practices say everyone should have at least 3 to 6 months in emergency savings. The general recommendation is to save between 10 and 15 percent of your annual income. But personal savings rates in the U.S. today are half of what they were 50 years ago.
Further, at the start of 2018, U.S. consumers have more credit card debt than ever before. The outstanding balance of credit card debt Americans are carrying is more than $1 trillion. From 2016 to 2017 the average credit card debt per household increased by 5 percent.
Americans are falling deeper into debt and many have no liquid savings to help when a costly emergency strikes.
Beyond this, nearly half of families have no retirement account savings at all, according to the Economic Policy Institute. Yet, to be financially ready to retire at age 67, Fidelity advises that you should have 10 times your final salary in savings. Other “conventional wisdom” suggests that a savings of $1 million to $1.5 million is appropriate for a comfortable retirement.
While these numbers may feel daunting, there is hope. Each day, every financial choice is an opportunity to better our financial health. We can always make wiser choices. If you do not have emergency savings, start saving more today. If you are carrying credit card debt forward each month, stop making new charges and craft a plan to pay off your debt. And it is never too early or too late to start saving for retirement.
We Help People Get Out of Debt By Filing for Bankruptcy
Here at the Law Office of Barbara B. Braziel, we’re committed to helping people get out of debt and gain the financial freedom they deserve. We offer free consultations so that you can understand the protections and benefits of bankruptcy and how filing with affect you and your family.
We invite you to learn more about who we are here. If you live in Savannah, GA or the surrounding areas and have questions about your debt relief options, let’s meet for a free consultation.
Call us today at (833) 522-1069 or contact us to schedule a free consultation.
We are a debt relief agency. We help people file for bankruptcy relief under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code.
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