Frightening Financial Stats to Avoid - Money Tip Tuesday

It’s Halloween time. The time when many people chat about ghost stories, urban legends and share other spooky tales.  

In this tip, we’ll share a few spooky stats of our own--only these are financial.  

Links:

• Check out more frightening financial stats from Forbes.
• Open a savings account to start building your emergency fund
• Learn more about Triangle's wealth management solutions
• Check out our Financial Freedom: Your Path to Debt Free Living webinar
• Check out TCU University for more financial education tips and resources!
• Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter!
• Learn more about Triangle Credit Union

Transcript:

Welcome to Money Tip Tuesday from the Making Money Personal podcast.  

With a little Internet searching you can find all kinds of stats on the financial situations current Americans find themselves in.  

Some of these stats are positive, while others are a little more negative, even frightening for some. 

Being in good financial shape is paramount to living a life where you don’t have to be haunted by debt or frightened by unexpected expenses.  

 In this tip we’ll share a few frightening financial facts out there that many Americans are facing right now but will share some suggested solutions because the good news is that with the right planning, these can be avoided.  

Frightening fact #1 – 56% of Americans can’t afford a $1000 expense. 

If you’re in this situation, things can get scary if an expense pops up that you’re not expecting. It could be a spontaneous car issue, a broken phone, a sudden medical bill, or immediate home repair.  

This can be frightening because the panic and distress of an unexpected situation can be compounded by the stress of not having the money to cover the cost.  

Don’t let one of these almost inevitable situations derail your financially. You can avoid this freaky financial situation by making sure you set up an emergency fund.  

It doesn’t have to be a lot initially. You just need to set up a buffer so in case something unexpected happens, you can cover a portion or all of it without freaking out. 

Try to save $500 or even $1,000 to begin. Having that money available for emergencies will make a world of a difference in how you’ll face your next emergency - with either peace or panic.  

Frightening Fact #2 – Roughly 37% of Americans haven’t done any retirement planning. 

The reason this can be frightening is because to maximize your retirement savings you need to have a plan, and the earlier you plan, the more you’ll have. If you don’t have a plan at all you run the risk of missing critical years to build up retirement savings and may not have enough to retire by the time you reach that age. 

Planning for retirement is a critical action to take if you dream of not having to work one day but it can be confusing or intimidating on how to start.  

This is where working with a financial advisor or planner can be critical.  

They will help you determine how much you will need in retirement, how much you will need to save now to reach that goal and can help you adjust your plan as you age or life changes. 

If you’re ready to get started, Triangle has wealth management services to help you no matter what your age or how much money you have. 

Frightening Fact #3 – Average household credit card debt is up from last year. 

According to a 2023 WalletHub survey, the average US household has roughly $10,170 in credit card debt. This is up from $8,942 last year.  

This can be frightening because stress and anxiety increase due to the financial pressure of growing debt. Purchase power goes down and opportunities to build wealth decrease severely impacting your ability to move your finances in a positive direction.  

If you’re in this situation, you’re not alone. Others are likely going through the same things as you. There are many reasons why household debt is increasing, much of which could be due to rising prices and inflation.  

But your finances are still your responsibility and if you’re ready to make a change, try some of these suggestions to stop adding to that debt and start paying it down. 

• Make a budget to avoid overspending 
• Look for a good debt consolidation plans to organize your debt and lower your interest rate 
• Watch webinars and get education on how to work a debt-payoff plan using the snowball method 
• Use a debit card and/or cash for a while to give those credit cards a break, or stop using them altogether  

It is possible for people to successfully get out of debt. Just keep in mind that it won’t happen immediately and takes effort, but the peace of mind that comes from success is worth it.  

This autumn season don’t let your finances be another thing scaring you. 

The best way to avoid becoming one of these frightening statistics is to take control of how you manage your money now and make solid plans for your financial future. 

We offer many tools at trianglecu.org and triangle university where you can get education and valuable resources to get started right away. 

If there are any other tips or topics, you’d like us to cover, let us know at tcupodcast@trianglecu.org.  Like and follow our Making Money Personal FB and IG page and look for our sponsor, Triangle Credit Union on social media to share your thoughts.  

Thanks for listening to today’s Money Tip Tuesday and check out our other tips and episodes on the Making Money Personal podcast.  

Have a great day!