40% of Americans don’t have $400 in the bank for emergency expenses: Federal Reserve

[foosh]

In my area, COL is raising faster than income. If you got your average annual raise of 3%, water went up 75% in 2years, garbage+sewer 100% in 1 year. Electricity is way up as well. If you didn't get a raise, your monthly savings are chipping away.

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

Because "free will" does not exist, there is no such concept as "personal responsibility".

[TheGreatGamble]

23 minutes ago, foosh said:

In my area, COL is raising faster than income. If you got your average annual raise of 3%, water went up 75% in 2years, garbage+sewer 100% in 1 year. Electricity is way up as well. If you didn't get a raise, your monthly savings are chipping away.

Not just your area. It’s everywhere. 

[SaysWho?]

3 hours ago, sblfilms said:

Both are relevant to why a person could struggle to come up with a relatively small amount of money in an emergency.

 

"Relatively small" is relative. $400 isn't peanuts to significantly more people than you think.

[Kal-El814]

4 hours ago, elbobo said:

The fact that personal finance is not taught in every high school in the country is an absolute travesty. 

Kids should learn this stuff before and in junior high.

[DarkStar189]

4 hours ago, elbobo said:

The fact that personal finance is not taught in every high school in the country is an absolute travesty. 95%+ of people will never touch the cosine button on a calculator again after 12th grade but we had to learn Trig but everyone needs to understand compound interest, taxes, budgeting, savings, retirement, and ROI but not a single minute is spent explaining any of this in high school right before kids go off and sign off on six figures of debt for a potentially useless degree. 

Agree so much. I was just talking about this exact subject to some friends the other night. I graduated high school in 2005.  I took an optional class my senior year that involved finances, banking, and job related topics. I learned a good bit but it didn't dive too deep into every day things adults can go through.  At no time in my schooling did we go over filing taxes which is something that every working American has to do yearly.  Now I know tax laws can change year to year but I would rather have been taught about taxes, different business structures, potential tax write offs, etc... then a lot of what I was taught in school.  

[Guest]

51 minutes ago, SaysWho? said:

 

"Relatively small" is relative. $400 isn't peanuts to significantly more people than you think.

That is literally the point. 

[SaysWho?]

3 minutes ago, sblfilms said:

That is literally the point. 

 

No, it's not, because you think much of it is just bad management and not a very shitty system.

[DarkStar189]

Let's not forget outrageous medical bills that can put you into debt faster than anything. I don't have it anywhere near as bad as some people, but my wife had to have a gastroscopy procedure done in December, then broke her hand in April. *Boom* now we have $4,300 in medical bills. Plus physical therapy was 3 times a week for the first month, now 2 times a week for the 2nd month @ $45 per visit. I pay $602 per month for the gold plan with Capital Blue Cross. The medical field is out-fucking-rageous. Capital Blue sent us a summary paper that showed what was done at each visit. The first visit for physical therapy the insurance company had to pay $728. The 2nd trip was around $650.  You're telling me they charge $700 for a 1 hour appointment for physical therapy?? I respect their knowledge in making my wife's hand the best it can be and she's made amazing progress in healing, but these prices are not realistic. 

[TheLeon]

I'm almost at a point where I can start actually saving. I've got most of my credit card debt (a mixture of stupid decisions and "oh shit" emergencies) taken care of. I'm looking to move to a cheaper apartment, and hopefully soon I can land a job that pays at least a little better. If I can get all that done (which doesn't seem completely unobtainable) I could maintain my current "lifestyle" and start being somewhat financially responsible... by the time I'm 30. Yikes. 

[Guest]

10 minutes ago, SaysWho? said:

 

No, it's not, because you think much of it is just bad management and not a very shitty system.

WTF are you even talking about now?

[SaysWho?]

Just now, sblfilms said:

WTF are you even talking about now?

 

I'm wondering the same thing about your posts tbqh

[Guest]

3 minutes ago, SaysWho? said:

 

I'm wondering the same thing about your posts tbqh

No you aren’t. You are responding to things I haven’t even said. I know that’s kind of your thing though. Maybe don’t do that though?

[SaysWho?]

Just now, sblfilms said:

No you aren’t. You are responding to things I haven’t even said. I know that’s kind of your thing though. Maybe don’t do that though?

 

Yes, I really am as you're very clearly putting the onus on bad spending as you have a history of doing. You upvoted a similar post in this thread. You're saying $400 is relatively small. Then you said $400 actually being a lot to people is "the point." None of this makes any sense; it's like you're doubling down on a point you didn't think through.

 

And now you're getting personal. BORING.

[Guest]

Just now, SaysWho? said:

 

Yes, I really am as you're very clearly putting the onus on bad spending as you have a history of doing. You upvoted a similar post in this thread. You're saying $400 is relatively small. Then you said $400 actually being a lot to people is "the point." None of this makes any sense; it's like you're doubling down on a point you didn't think through.

 

And now you're getting personal. BORING.

 

The “that is literally the point” is regarding the second sentence, that it isn’t peanuts to a lot of people.

 

Financial mismanagement is absolutely a factor in people struggling, and we see this across all income levels. 

 

Pointing out your long track record of making up

claims people haven’t made is quite fair. It’s bizarre and super tired man. 

[Snaynay1]

I follow this woman on Instagram that is always out, always traveling around (the local area to like big bear and back) and she posted the other day an emergency fund go fund me for like 1500. Then the next fucken day she is posting herself getting a fucken tattoo.  People like that are the ones that upset me most.

[CastlevaniaNut18]

People in general are just dumb. Working all these years with the public, it has become quite obvious. 

 

Yes, the system is shitty and fucks people over. But a lot of people just plain old mismanage their shit. 

[CastlevaniaNut18]

We had a patient a couple nights ago who wanted to leave the hospital. The doctor didn't feel comfortable discharging him. Instead of just spending the rest of the night and likely going home the next day, he insisted he wanted to leave against medical advice. He was informed that if he did that, his insurance wouldn't cover his hospital stay. His response was "I don't care, I just won't pay it and it'll fall off my credit history in 10 years."

 

Yup, people are stupid. 

[SuperSpreader]

5 minutes ago, CastlevaniaNut18 said:

We had a patient a couple nights ago who wanted to leave the hospital. The doctor didn't feel comfortable discharging him. Instead of just spending the rest of the night and likely going home the next day, he insisted he wanted to leave against medical advice. He was informed that if he did that, his insurance wouldn't cover his hospital stay. His response was "I don't care, I just won't pay it and it'll fall off my credit history in 10 years."

 

Yup, people are stupid. 

It won't though

[CastlevaniaNut18]

4 minutes ago, 2user1cup said:

It won't though

Yeah, I didn't think it would. 

 

People be dumb. With their money and their lives in general. 

[johnny]

I was talking with coworkers and their husbands don’t even pay attention to money (or don’t budget correctly) and just buy shit. 

[SilentWorld]

15 minutes ago, 2user1cup said:

It won't though

Well that’s fucked. 

[SuperSpreader]

11 minutes ago, CastlevaniaNut18 said:

Yeah, I didn't think it would. 

 

People be dumb. With their money and their lives in general. 

You have to declare bankruptcy and go to court to get it to drop. It doesn't just drop if you don't pay your bills.

[CastlevaniaNut18]

5 minutes ago, 2user1cup said:

You have to declare bankruptcy and go to court to get it to drop. It doesn't just drop if you don't pay your bills.

Good to know. I don't know any of this stuff because I've never had financial problems. 

[SaysWho?]

7 hours ago, sblfilms said:

 

The “that is literally the point” is regarding the second sentence, that it isn’t peanuts to a lot of people.

 

Financial mismanagement is absolutely a factor in people struggling, and we see this across all income levels. 

 

Pointing out your long track record of making up

claims people haven’t made is quite fair. It’s bizarre and super tired man. 

 

No, the long track record is you being so needlessly  vague explaining yourself that it's a page of the other person figuring you out, and you're smart enough to know you're needlessly vague about it. You literally upvoted a post that said much of this was people bad with money and now you're claiming that's not the point you were making. Hilariously, much of the thread is in agreement with me, yet you're the one who's confused by my posts. If you want people to not "make up" what you're saying (because you go through this same song and dance with almost everyone on the board, you've been called out as such, and you're smart enough to know that despite trying to bring this on me), be specific and stop with the one-line responses that barely flesh out whatever point you're making. Even this response of yours barely says anything.

 

Furthermore, it can't be relatively small and "not peanuts." You have a warped view of what "relatively small" is, which is probably why the point you keep repeating isn't the problem with health care but a response similar to one I've heard for years from conservatives, "If you didn't buy that iPhone and Latte, you'd be fine!"

[Guest]

There is nothing vague about what I said here. You should probably read the Fed report that the article you linked to is based, because it addresses the many factors that lead to the result.

[SaysWho?]

You were vague. Own it and move on.

[Guest]

16 minutes ago, SaysWho? said:

You were vague. Own it and move on.

What is vague about “both things are factors” 

 

Again, read the Fed report that the article is based on which agrees with that position, not yours that financial mismanagement isn’t relevant. You might learn some things, I certainly did.

[Jason]

[SaysWho?]

41 minutes ago, sblfilms said:

 

Again, read the Fed report that the article is based on which agrees with that position, not yours that financial mismanagement isn’t relevant. 

 

There's a thick irony in accusing someone else of arguing against things you never said and then saying this. WOOSH!

[MarSolo]

I’ll openly admit I was stupid with my money for a two year period (2011-2013) and I’m still paying for it today. 

 

I was depressed after losing losing my job and getting into grad school, and spent that time living off credit cards and taking out a loan for grad school itself, while bringing in no income. I’m slowly getting myself out of said hole.

[Guest]

10 minutes ago, SaysWho? said:

 

There's a thick irony in accusing someone else of arguing against things you never said and then saying this. WOOSH!

 

18 hours ago, SaysWho? said:

 

Then I don't see the relevance in bringing it up besides to be distracting?

 

[SaysWho?]

19 minutes ago, sblfilms said:

 

 

 

And...? 

 

"Things in the country can be bad and people can be terrible with money at the same time. It certainly is not one or the other."

 

"Then I don't see the relevance in bringing it up besides to be distracting?"

 

Most posters seemed to understand this post on the first go:

 

On 5/28/2019 at 7:53 AM, SaysWho? said:

 

We know. There's still an issue with bad pay, income inequality, high medical expenses, inflation, and lackluster upward mobility in the country.  

 

Most of us have met that guy who goes, "herp derp stop buying iphones." That's how your posts come across. Hence why it's distracting to core issues that prevent people who try to save from saving. That you think $400 is "relatively small" is revealing and may be why you're so focused on people and not the system.

[Guest]

17 minutes ago, SaysWho? said:

 

And...? 

 

"Things in the country can be bad and people can be terrible with money at the same time. It certainly is not one or the other."

 

"Then I don't see the relevance in bringing it up besides to be distracting?"

 

Most posters seemed to understand this post on the first go:

 

 

Most of us have met that guy who goes, "herp derp stop buying iphones." That's how your posts come across. Hence why it's distracting to core issues that prevent people who try to save from saving. That you think $400 is "relatively small" is revealing and may be why you're so focused on people and not the system.

 

What thing did I say you said that you didn’t actually say?

 

$400 is relatively small. As per the Fed report, it’s significantly less than the average of one months rent for the lowest wage earning quartile, as an example. That for many people it is a bar that can’t eclipse is a serious problem, for which many factors exist and you can read about many of them in the Fed report.

[Chris-]

I will happily accept a relatively small $400 donation to my bank account then, @sblfilms