"Most Americans Can't Afford $1,000 Emergency Expense"
"Most Americans Can't Afford $1,000 Emergency Expense"
by Jessica Dickler
"When the unexpected strikes, most Americans aren't prepared to pay for it. A majority, or 64%, of Americans don't have enough cash on hand to handle a $1,000 emergency expense, according to a survey by the National Foundation for Credit Counseling, or NFCC, released on Wednesday. Only 36% said they would tap their rainy day funds for an emergency. The rest of the 2,700 people polled said that they would have to go to other extremes to cover an unexpected expense, such as borrowing money or taking out a cash advance on a credit card.
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Most people take the view that credit cards are emergency savings. It's one of the reasons credit card write-offs are so large now. Many people during the recession relied on their credit cards to maintain their entitlements. When the emergency turned into chronic unemployment or loss of income, the credit card debt grew out of control, and many have opted not to pay them. "It's alarming," said Gail Cunningham, a spokeswoman for the Washington, DC-based non-profit. "For consumers who live paycheck to paycheck- having spent tomorrow's money- an unplanned expense can truly put them in financial distress," she noted.
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Most people take the view that credit cards are emergency savings. It's one of the reasons credit card write-offs are so large now. Many people during the recession relied on their credit cards to maintain their entitlements. When the emergency turned into chronic unemployment or loss of income, the credit card debt grew out of control, and many have opted not to pay them. "It's alarming," said Gail Cunningham, a spokeswoman for the Washington, DC-based non-profit. "For consumers who live paycheck to paycheck- having spent tomorrow's money- an unplanned expense can truly put them in financial distress," she noted.
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That's the case for Allyson Curtis, 35. "I think about it every day," she said. Curtis was unemployed for only three months last year, but in that time she accumulated $5,000 in credit card debt that she's now struggling to pay down. Do you think that $5,000 in debt was to pay for food, water, and shelter? How many indulgent entitlements were included in the bill? In the case of an emergency, Curtis said she would likely postpone other payments and pile on additional debt. In other words, she would go Ponzi. She is already putting off $450 in dental work and a car inspection due to a crack in her windshield, which will cost $300 to replace, she said.
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Many respondents, 17%, said they would borrow money from friends or family. Another 17% said they would neglect other financial obligations- like a credit card bill or mortgage payment- in order to free up some funds. It must be horrifying for bankers to realize so many view mortgage payments as optional, like Peggy Tanous of OC Housewives fame who got a boob job instead of paying her mortgage.
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Alternatively, 12% of the respondents said they would have to sell or pawn some assets to come up with $1,000 and 9% said they would need to take out a loan. Another 9% said they would get a cash advance from a credit card, according to the NFCC. Cunningham finds that particularly troubling. Neglecting other debt obligations- or worse piling on more debt- "really exacerbates the problem," she said. An earlier study by the same organization found that 30% of Americans have zero dollars in non-retirement savings. A separate study by the National Bureau of Economic Research found that 50% of Americans would struggle to come up with $2,000 in a pinch. Annndd it's gone..."
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