The Vanishing American Dream: The Long Road to Financial Stability
In this article from Next Billion, Jennifer Tescher and Tilman Ehrbeck tell us, “The financial fragility of American households is better understood now than it has ever been, and the picture is downright scary. It’s not enough to understand it, we have to act.” Read the full article to learn about the financial challenges facing […]
Amy Cox Household Profile: Living Paycheck to Paycheck
U.S. Financial Diaries Case study: Amy Cox is a white 34-year-old single mother of two. She lives with her children, Hailey, 9, and Andy, 8, near Cincinnati, OH. A natural caregiver, Amy works at a day care center.
Household Debt Reaches New High
Rachel Schneider, senior vice president at the Financial Health Network, studied 235 low and middle income families over one year as they handle their finances, with New York University Professor Jonathan Morduch. They found that families put a premium on stability — and that’s getting harder and harder to achieve. Schneider and Morduch documented their findings in a […]
We Tracked Every Dollar 235 U.S. Households Spent for a Year, and Found Widespread Financial Vulnerability
Income inequality in the United States is growing, but the most common economic statistics hide a significant portion of Americans’ financial instability by drawing on annual aggregates of income and spending. Annual numbers can hide fluctuations that determine whether families have trouble paying bills or making important investments at a given moment. The lack of access […]
Working Paper: Income Gains And Month-To-Month Income Volatility
A working paper from the U.S. Financial Diaries on income gains and month-to-month income volatility.
New Book with Chapter from Jennifer Tescher and Rachel Schneider Released
The Financial Health Network’s own Jennifer Tescher and Rachel Schneider have contributed a chapter to the newly released book, What It’s Worth: Strengthening the Financial Futures of Families, Communities and the Nations. Americans everywhere struggle to build strong financial futures for themselves and their families. The book provides a 360-degree view of the financial challenges […]
U.S. Financial Diaries: Savings Horizons
U.S. Financial Diaries: Savings plays a central role in conversations about American household finance. Surveys suggest that few American households save enough for retirement, nor are Americans adequately prepared for emergencies
U.S. Financial Diaries: Emergency Savings
Standard financial literacy curricula recommends that households should have at least three months of income set aside in emergency savings.
Mateo And Lucia Household Profile: Thriving But Still Vulnerable In The U.S.
U.S. Financial Diaries Case study: Mateo Valencia, 31, and Lucia Benitez, 30, are an unmarried couple living in Queens with their four year-old son Pablo.
U.S. Financial Diaries: An Invisible Finance Sector – How Households Use Financial Tools of Their Own Making
The U.S. Financial Diaries (USFD) is an ambitious research project first-of-its-kind undertaken in the U.S. The project is collecting detailed financial data from more than 200 low- and moderate-income households over the course of a year.
Sandra Young Household Profile: Budgeting For A Year With Lumpy Income
U.S. Financial Diaries Case study: Sandra Young, 52, is an African American woman living in Brooklyn with her grown children: Tyler, 25, and Kayla, 24.
Elena Navarro Household Profile: Getting Through A Tough Year
U.S. Financial Diaries Case study: Elena Navarro is a single, 27-year-old woman living outside of San Jose, CA.