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Americans just weren't ready for a financial crisis the magnitude of the coronavirus pandemic. In fact, according to Clever.com, however shaky or sturdy people's financial wellness may have been before Covid-19 hit, a lot of them are a lot worse off, with 50 percent saying their savings are going to run out by the end of the month.
In addition, 25 percent have taken on more debt, 75 percent say the financial effects of the pandemic will be worse than those of the Great Recession (and remember, the recovery was only a recovery for part of the economy, with plenty—particularly millennials and would-be retirees—still struggling), 30 percent of homeowners had less than $1,000 in emergency funds before the pandemic hit and 22 percent don't have enough in savings to make one month's mortgage payment.
Home buyers, says the report, are pulling out of the market, with 48 percent deciding to postpone looking for a residence. Home owners, on the other hand, are putting off mortgage payments, with almost 16 percent of those with a mortgage saying they've made agreements with their loan servicing companies to suspend or reduce their monthly payments for now.
And sellers are pulling their homes off the market, with 85 percent of those who had intended to sell within the next 12 months changing their minds because of the pandemic. Twenty-three percent have pulled the listing, 27 percent had to drop the listing price and 31 percent are postponing listing their homes.
When it comes to renters, 45 percent don't have enough savings to cover a month's rent, and almost 40 percent are worried about evictions—but just 11 percent have managed to work something out with their landlords for either rent forgiveness or a reduction in rent.
And about those renters: according to the report, when compared with homeowner respondents to the survey, 46 percent said they had less than $500 in emergency savings—and renters were twice as likely to say that they'd never had emergency savings. A quarter of renters are having a tough time paying their rent.
Emergency funds just aren't going far enough for renter respondents, with 13 percent saying they'd already spent what they had and 11 percent saying that what they'd managed to stash wouldn't even last a month. Only 6 percent said they had enough put by to last them six months to a year.
And people without cash are taking on debt, with 58 percent saying it's on credit cards, 21 percent cash-out refinancing, 27 percent getting personal loans and 29 percent borrowing from a friend or a family member. And among those who have taken on debt as a result of Covid-19, 72 percent have borrowed less than $2,000—but an unfortunate 5 percent say they're already $10,000 behind.
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Marlene Satter
Marlene Y. Satter has worked in and written about the financial industry for decades.
