Make Savings Automatic

Many American Families Don’t Have Savings Accounts

 

The latest Federal Reserve Board Survey of Consumer Finances data, revealed that most low and moderate income households don’t have savings accounts:

• 68% of low-income households (incomes below $18,900) – don’t have a savings or money market account.
• 52% of moderate-income households (incomes $18,900 -$33,899) – don’t have a savings or money market account.
•  42% of middle-income households (incomes $33,899 - $53,599) don’t have a savings or money market account. 
• Only 20% of upper-income households income of $89,300+ don’t have an account.

 Kind of hard to be a saver if you don't have a savings.  If you don't have a savings account, now would be the perfect time to set one up and if you are getting a tax refund, have the refund directly deposited into your new savings to give you a nice jump start.  

 

A nationwide survey this month showed that a large majority of Americans (83%) believe that the most effective way to build up personal savings balances is to automatically transfer funds from a paycheck or from checking to savings. 

  

While many consumers believe in this systematic approach to savings, most don't actually have these systematic transfers set up for themselves.  Setting up a systematic savings transfers is really easy.  You can have money directly deposited to your savings account right from your paycheck or with most online banking programs you can just set up a transfer yourself.  With online banking you decide the amount and frequency of these transfers and can easily adjustment instantly.  The key is to make sure they happen automatically.  If you don't see it you won't spend it.

   

Next week is America Saves Week, and the message you will be hearing from many Banks and consumer groups is “Make Savings Automatic”.   Why not make it a point to set up a automatic deposit from your payroll or a transfer from your checking into a savings account ever pay period.  You will be amazed at how quickly the dollars will add up.  You owe it to yourself to "Pay Yourself First" and "Make Savings Automatic.".

 

 

 America Saves Week