Saving, Saving and Saving.

Personal Savings At All Time Lows

"People once again spent everything they made and then some last year, pushing the personal savings rate to the lowest level since the Great Depression more than seven decades ago."

"The Commerce Department reported Thursday that the savings rate for all of 2006 was a negative 1 percent, meaning that not only did people spend all the money they earned but they also dipped into savings or increased borrowing to finance purchases. The 2006 figure was lower than a negative 0.4 percent in 2005 and was the poorest showing since a negative 1.5 percent savings rate in 1933 during the Depression." (Associated Press, Feb. 5, 2007)

Money Problems Among the Elderly

As reported in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution ("Golden Years are Often in the Red" by Bob Moos, Sunday, Feb. 4, 2007)

According to the Boston-based National Consumer Law Center ( www.consumerlaw.org - See their articles on "The Life and Debt Cycle", July, 2006)

• 93% of retirees carry some debt

• 30% of retirees describe their debts as a problem

• 27% of homeowner retirees haven't paid off their mortgages

• 24% of Medicare beneficiaries report financial problems from medical bills

• 14% of 64-year-olds face retirement with a negative net worth

• Average credit card debt for 65 to 69 year olds grew 217 percent over the last ten years to $5,844

• Medicare leaves Seniors paying much of their medical bills. Seniors average paying $3,500 of their own medical costs each year. That's a 45 percent increase in 10 years.

The article recommends that seniors get help from groups such as the Consumer Credit Counseling Service of North Central Texas, a nonprofit agency. Sometimes they can talk to credit card companies and get them to cut their rates.

A 2004 study by Demos ( www.demos.org ) found people within 10 years of retirement "spending an average of one-third of their income on debt payments."

A 2005 Gallup Poll found that "retirement is the financial issue Americans are most worried about." Just over half thought they would be able to live comfortably in retirement. ( www.galluppoll.com - Retirement Expectations, Reality Not Entirely Consistent, by Jeffrey M. Jones, May 2, 2005)

"...according to Federal Reserve Board statistics, Americans are not saving nearly enough for their own retirements.... According to Gallup's annual Personal Finance poll, conducted April 2-5, 2007, nearly three-quarters of nonretired Americans say they plan to rely on income from part-time work after they "retire," to help fund their golden years. This includes 21% who say part-time work will be a major income source for them, and another 52% who say it will be a minor source." (This is Not Your Father's Retirement: How the Next Generation of Retirees Could be a Productive Working Class, by Lydia Saad, May 4, 2007)

"Americans are not saving nearly enough for their own retirements."

Rakyat Malaysia pun sama, ramai yang tahu, tapi tidak ambil apa-apa tindakan untuk mencegah.

source: http://www.character-education.info/Money/money-studies-and-statistics.htm