Personal Finance Changes
March 11, 2009 by Miranda Marquit
Filed under Finance
One of the things that has impressed my about Barack Obama has been the way he realistically points out that there is no “magic” fix to the economy. That we will have to do some work and wait a little while for the recession to come to an end. I like this because too often we continually look for a “quick fix”, when we should focus instead on long-term stability.
This is also true in our personal finances (even though our leaders don’t want to encourage responsible personal finance behavior). While getting our financial houses in order may lengthen the recession, it is important to make changes to our consumer and personal finance habits.
America’s Research Group finds changes to US consumer and personal finance behavior.
While 48% of consumers say that they had not changed their habits, they did mention that their finances are worse off. And, in spite of a positive national savings rate, many of the respondents said they weren’t able to save effectively because of the economy. Here are some of the other interesting tidbits regarding personal finance behavior from the survey:
- 75% say they are using cash more.
- 51% say they have stopped using credit cards.
- 50.5% say they have reduced their shopping budgets.
- 47% say that they are less likely to purchase an item at regular price.
Of course, one has to be careful of such surveys — especially since there is a certain self-reporting bias that leads people to give answers they think are “right.” But it is still an interesting snapshot of the general mood of the public when it comes to personal finances and consumer habits.
Are you changing your personal finance habits in response to the recession?
image source: sxc.hu
Hi,
Yes, I’m changing my personal finance policy – I definitely cut ‘unnecessary’ eating-out, such as the $3 Starbucks coffee. Instead buy Starbucks on the go, I’ll bring a home-brewed coffee that could beat Starbucks’ taste if I opened a stall next to it. LOL
Thanks for sharing, Money Estate! I think that it makes a difference, some of the little things. While it may not seem like much, over time some of the small changes we make can really add up.
Yes, I’m making changes. I need to prepare for all my money being seized by the government.
I’ve been very disappointed with Obama’s response on the economy, and his lack of focus. The Treasury Dept. is a mess and seems to be lacking leadership. Even Obama supporter Warren Buffett rightly criticized his lack of focus in this area, and negative tone of his comments to the point where his teleprompter began telling him to adopt a more optimistic tone. His teleprompter needs to say Job 1 is the economy, Job 2 is the economy, Job 3 is the economy and stop wasting people’s money screwing around with all this other crap.
Personally, I’m cutting back on spending, paying down debt, to put myself in a stronger financial position when the recovery begins, and the economy will recover in spite of the crazy things the politicians are doing to us.
While I would like to see better focus from Obama, I think that he has a lot on his plate beyond just the economy. And at the same time, he’s meeting resistance from his own party, not to mention the GOP. Although I do like his more realistic take when he says there’s no magic or immediate fix. But I guess reality doesn’t play on the perception-based stock market.
At any rate, I agree that things will recover. And I think preparing now, and doing our best to position ourselves, will be most beneficial.
Personally, I don’t think that long-term investments in things like alternative energy, education and healthcare are stupid. I think that they are the priorities we should have had for years. And he’s not blaming everyone else. He’s stating two facts 1: He didn’t get us in this mess and 2: It is his responsibility as president to help lead us out. He has been accepting responsibility for what goes on from here.
That’s the point. The economy should be the only thing on his plate right now….. not Jay Leno, not his basketball brackets, not the Wednesday night cocktail parties, not playing cutesy in front of the news cameras, not the blame everybody else whining, and certainly not trying to sell the lame idea that nationalized healthcare, education, and expensive alternative energies are the keys to recovery. More entitlement programs and new taxes are the last thing we need. The banks are the key to recovery, plain and simple. The only person with half a brain in Washington right now is Bernanke who has set up an interest rate environment with a normalized yield curve so financial firms can start earning their way out of the problem.