Fifty-six percent of those surveyed recently by the Pew Charitable Trusts rated their financial situations positively, up from 42% surveyed in 2009, at the nadir of the crisis-induced recession.
The increase in optimism was coupled with considerable anxiety, however. Some 21% of the 7,000 households surveyed by Pew, a nonprofit economic-policy research center, said they aren’t planning to retire.
And 82% report having experienced a financial shock such as a drop in income, a hospital visit, the loss of a spouse or partner, or a major car or house repair in the last year. Of those reporting such a shock, 55% said it made it harder to make ends meet.
The Pew survey, conducted in November and December, found that just 51% of households believe they are financially secure. More than half (55%) said they just break even financially or spend more than they earn each month, and 33% said their household had no savings.
Lower gasoline prices—dipping as low as $2 a gallon earlier this year before inching back up—may help alleviate some of that pressure. Indications are that Americans may be saving the money they’re not spending on gasoline or using it to pay down debt. The personal savings rate in December was 4.9%, up from 4.3% in November, according to the Commerce Department, which is going to release its income and personal-spending report for January early next week.
Still, the Pew survey shows that many households continue to struggle. Only 45% reported having a steady income, and 57% said they weren’t prepared for financial emergencies.
And what about the American dream of continually improving prosperity? Back in 2009, 39% of households surveyed said they felt it was common for someone to start poor, work hard and become rich. Five years later, in 2014, 23% said they felt that.
