Even as inflation continues to slow in the second half of 2024, many Americans say they are still struggling to make ends meet.
A survey by personal finance website Bankrate found that about a third of American workers live paycheck to paycheck and have little money left to save after paying their monthly bills.
For some Americans, living off their entire weekly income was a harsh reality even before the pandemic. About 38% of full-time workers nationwide said they lived paycheck to paycheck in 2016. According to job search site CareerBuilder,.
A Bankrate survey of 2,400 respondents conducted in mid-May found that low-income workers earning less than $50,000 a year were more likely to live paycheck to paycheck than workers in other income brackets. Paycheck to paycheck is generally defined as the inability to immediately pay living expenses in the event of a loss of income.
Americans feel trapped these days as inflation makes everyday purchases more expensive. Gas prices fall in June There were hopeful signs For consumers, however, rising costs Car Insurance and Home Many people’s savings are wasted.
“Inflation has completely destroyed Americans’ wages because their wages haven’t kept pace with inflation,” Bankrate analyst Sarah Foster said in a statement.
As economists are quick to point out, wage growth has been outpacing inflation since February 2023. According to the latest federal data, average wages grew 3.9% year over year in June. During the same period, consumer prices increased by only 3%..
Despite those indicators, Americans say they still feel the dollar is tight.It doesn’t extend as far as it used to.
For Americans living paycheck to paycheck, wrestling with everyday expenses is “like tightrope walking without a safety net, and balancing spending and income becomes a delicate dance,” Foster said. “Inflation is a silent thief, and it takes its toll. It’s often an opportunity for Americans to live comfortably.”
Of course, the cost of many basic living expenses, including food, housing, and transportation, has increased dramatically since 2019. CBS’s price tracking program appears. Between groceries and restaurants, Americans Spend more of your income on food We’ve accomplished more than we have in the last 30 years.
“It costs a lot more to live comfortably than it used to,” Foster said. “Since the pandemic first began in February 2020, prices have gone up nearly 21%, so for every $1,000 someone spends on something they want and need, it’s now $210 more.”
Middle class households are being left behind
Another recent study found that a significant number of Americans say they are financially insecure. A survey conducted by Primerica earlier this month found that two-thirds of middle-class American households feel they are falling behind on their living expenses. The Primerica study also found that most households are cooking at home more often to save money.
A June survey of 4,000 Americans by Jenius Bank found that half of the respondents were losing sleep over their dire financial situation. The bank said many respondents cited persistent inflation and rising debt as the reasons for their increased financial stress.
A LendingTree report released this week found that one-third of American households are financially insecure, meaning they have some or great difficulty paying for things like food, housing, auto loans and medical bills.
“It’s concerning, but not surprising, that one in three American households is financially insecure,” Matt Schultz, LendingTree’s chief credit analyst, said in a statement. “The perfect storm of record debt, astronomical interest rates, and relentless inflation has reduced the financial margin of error for many Americans to virtually zero.”
