How Satisfied Are You With Your Financial Situation?
click to see full screen
SaverLife asked this question to 500 members—how they felt in March, how they felt in June and how they anticipate feeling about their financial situation in September.
Most members had similar feelings of dissatisfaction in March and June, but people seem optimistic about September. Twenty-six percent of respondents expect to be “very satisfied” come September, a five percent increase over March. We wanted to know more.
When we reached out to find out why members expect their financial situation to improve by September, the responses were hopeful yet show the complexity caused by the pandemic.
Saver "Natasha" in Texas currently receives unemployment, but knows it will run out soon—yet she is hopeful to have a job in September. Natasha does data entry, and while jobs are scarce, there are some out there. The complicating factor is that she has a 14 year old at home, so she’s only looking for jobs that allow her to work from home, making the search somewhat more difficult. She’s also not sure if she will send her child to school in the fall, if schools are open.
When we asked what she would tell her Congressperson if given the opportunity, Natasha said that Congress needs to either find a way to provide more jobs for people who are stuck at home, or provide more resources to allow people to stay current with their bills.
"Alex" is currently unemployed, but when asked if he thinks he’ll still need unemployment benefits come September he says “no” because he is hopeful that by September he is back at his job, driving for Uber. He’s hopeful that the virus will wind down in New York State and he’ll be able to drive regularly. Right now there just aren’t enough passengers.
Alex has one child in elementary school, and while schools were closed, Alex handled childcare duties, including distance learning. He worries about how they’d handle childcare if he goes back to work full-time, but school does not. He thinks that perhaps his wife, who works part-time, might work less and stay home on days when classes are virtual.
Alex thinks that the financial support from the federal government, in terms of stimulus and unemployment benefits, has been incredibly helpful so far. When asked what else the government could do to help him, he said “Nothing, I can take care of myself,” but then quickly added, “they need to do something to help with the pandemic.”
