Most Americans OK With Overspending

A new survey from COUNTRY Financial shows that most Americans spend more than they make, at least occasionally, but they are mostly okay with that. The May 2012 COUNTRY Financial Security Index concluded that 52% of respondents spent in excess of their monthly income at least a couple of months each year, but only 9% said their lifestyle is more than they can afford. If you are spending more than you make on a regular basis and find that you cannot afford it, you may want to talk to me about your options, such as filing bankruptcy in Kansas City.

The survey did find that 51% of respondents have a household budget in place. However, many appear to have a difficult time following it every month. Budget shortfalls occurred at least 6 months out of every year for 21% of respondents in the survey. I would suggest that because most families have a budget, they do not see their overspending as a problem.



Those surveyed compensated for the excess expenses with a variety of things. 36.2% used money from a savings account and 21.7% used a credit card. Additionally, 12.3% delayed bill payments and 7.8% borrowed money. It is also noteworthy that of the 21% of survey respondents who reported regularly having monthly expenses in excess of their income, only 13.5% adjusted their spending the next month to get back on track.

Lots of Americans also say that they are not meeting their savings goals. According to the survey, 61% of budgeters and 30% of non-budgeters create a monthly savings goal. However, of those with a savings goal, 57% of budgeters and 54% of non-budgeters say they meet their goals 50% of the time or less. I would suggest moving savings funds to a less accessible, but still liquid, account. For example, you may want to consider a money market account with limited check writing availability. Please feel free to leave your comments or questions.