Thursday, August 21, 2025

Total Household Debt Increased in Q3 2020

Tue, 17 November 2020  |  debt mortgages 

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York's Center for Microeconomic Data today issued its Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit, which shows that total household debt increased by $87 billion (0.6%) to $14.35 trillion in the third quarter of 2020. The increase more than offset the decline seen in the second quarter of 2020 as total household debt has surpassed its 2020Q1 reading. The Report is based on data from the New York Fed's Consumer Credit Panel, a nationally representative sample of individual- a... Read More

Consumer Expectations about Household Finances Weaken

Mon, 09 November 2020  |  inflation financial situation 

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York's Center for Microeconomic Data released the October 2020 Survey of Consumer Expectations, which shows a decline in income and spending growth expectations. Changes in labor market expectations were mixed showing declines in both average job loss and job finding expectations. Median inflation expectations declined at the short-term horizon, while remaining unchanged at the medium-term horizon. Uncertainty and disagreement about future inflation decreased slightly but remained at an elevated level.
The main findings from the October 2020 Survey a... Read More

Americans Dig Deep to Stay Strong

Tue, 06 October 2020  |  consumers pandemic 

According to Fidelity Investments®’ Moving Forward study, anxiety has been on the rise since social distancing first began and the market was sent into a tailspin in March—and that anxiety is expected to continue into the new year. Looking ahead to 2021, nearly 70% do not see stress relief happening—and perhaps as a result, 58% say they are financially preparing differently for the new year. Despite an unprecedented level of uncertainty, the study also reveals that in dealing with the crisis, Americans are expressing confidence in their abilities to take on the challenges ahead.
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SoFI Creates Weekly Income ETF (TGIF)

Fri, 02 October 2020  |  investing income 

SoFi, the San Francisco-based online personal finance company, has launched a new exchange-traded fund (ETF) that could help retirees or anyone interested in regular distributions from their investments. The new ETF, the SoFI Weekly Income ETF (NYSE:TGIF) is the company's first fixed-income offering and the industry's first ETF to offer a weekly distribution to fund shareholders. The Fund intends to pay out dividends and interest income, if any, weekly, although there is no guarantee these payouts will be made.

TGIF is an actively managed fund that seeks to achieve its investm... Read More

Workplace Benefits Under Scrutiny

Wed, 16 September 2020  |  workplace 

A recent consumer survey shows the majority of working Americans will be looking to their workplace benefits for health and wealth support due to COVID-19, especially as they prepare for open enrollment in the midst of a global pandemic.

While most working individuals (84%) believe that their core benefits (e.g. medical, vision and dental) are sufficient in helping cover unplanned medical expenses, Voya’s new survey also found that roughly 7-in-10 employees (71%) plan to spend more time reviewing voluntary benefit options offered by their employers as a result of COVID-19 than the... Read More

Consumers focus on saving

Wed, 02 September 2020  |  consumers 

Despite facing unprecedented economic challenges, over half of U.S. consumers report saving more according to a new survey conducted by The Harris Poll.

The survey reveals that, in particular, Gen Z and Millennial consumers are leading the way with over 60% of both generations reporting an uptick in savings. When thinking about the future, another 76% of consumers are somewhat likely or very likely to save more than they usually do each month.

With many consumers staying close to home, around 4 in 10 consumers reported spending more on groceries. A quarter are getting fo... Read More