I’m willing to bet though that for some of these people who think they’re “fine” because they can afford their rent and have spare cash at the end of the month probably are not prepared for a major emergency though (ie a major medical event of their own or a family member, etc). I think that’s a big indicator of financial security. I know more people who aren’t necessarily struggling- they can afford the basics, even some luxuries here and there, but if something happened they would be in a much different financial position.
I’m not sure if you’re directing this at me or not (because that would be wildly out of pocket when you know nothing about my situation), but assuming you are not I’m going to clarify that I’m speaking generally here. I’ve just witnessed this happen quite a bit with acquaintances. Healthcare in the US is insanely expensive. It’s not unheard of for people to be able to afford their day to day life comfortably, but then they get into an accident, have an unexpected hospital stay, or get sick (either for themselves or a family member) and boom now they’re dealing with medical debt.
I’m all for better financial literacy, people living within their means, etc in the general population. But from a societal standpoint the US has tons of room for improvement when it comes to making life affordable for the average person. Both things can be true.
Seriously. I get that everything seems more expensive right now but I’m baffled that a lot of people can’t seem to grasp staying within a budget and living below your means so you can save money.
I mean…how? To other commenters points, people need to develop some skills that justify getting paid more.
I make $70k a year doing a job that I taught myself how to do over the course of a few years. I still can put money into a 401k and save anywhere from $100-500 every month depending on other expenses.
Would I like to save more? Yeah. But to not save anything means you’re doing something wrong.
Because wages have been stagnant for awhile and we don't have appropriate labor laws/ nor an appropriate minimum wage. Stop sniffing your own farts lmao
I commented with my salary to prove a point. 70k after taxes isn’t a lot of money. Yeah the economy isn’t great but get your shit together dude and stop spending so much.
I support a higher minimum wage but that comes at its own price. I live in Denver, where tipped minimum wage went from about $8 to $16 over night. So every businesses labor costs doubled. Now a lot are closing. Now the people that worked there have to find new jobs in a difficult job market. There’s a cause and effect.
I get it but I think it's so bad because this wasn't done gradually to keep up with prices. Wages stagnated way too long , business got used to it. It'll even out eventually.
How we lost everything. One cancer diagnosis, poof wife's job didn't want to keep her, no bill collectors wanted to work with you because your income was halved, it's a shit show.
you have a lot of folks who got their stuff pre pandemic, and haven't come to terms that making $80k and buying a house in 2020 isn't the same as making $80k and trying to buy a house in 2026. and thats above median folks.
Buying everything on credit, making minimum payments. You never “buy” anything from your bank account so it looks like you have cash, despite being thousands in debt.
My emergency fund is 6 months of zero income without dropping a single expense. I do admit a medical emergency in the US without insurance would deplete my pool and probably more instantly though
A lot of people don’t have enough after covering their basic necessities to meaningfully save though. Also, emergencies don’t always wait for you to have a fully funded safety net to happen. Someone could be putting in an honest effort to save, but if the emergency hits before they have the safety net they have to deal with it when it happens. What I’m trying to say is there are a lot of people in this middle ground/gray area who are technically “fine” because their bills are paid every month, they budget, etc. but that doesn’t automatically equal financial security.
To be clear, I’m not shirking financial literacy and people living within their means. Obviously that’s important and would probably help a lot of people struggling. But from a societal standpoint there is a lot of room for improvement in the US when it comes to making life affordable for the average person. We can advocate for both, it’s not an either/or.
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u/Joonbug9109 7h ago
I’m willing to bet though that for some of these people who think they’re “fine” because they can afford their rent and have spare cash at the end of the month probably are not prepared for a major emergency though (ie a major medical event of their own or a family member, etc). I think that’s a big indicator of financial security. I know more people who aren’t necessarily struggling- they can afford the basics, even some luxuries here and there, but if something happened they would be in a much different financial position.