Personal finances on the slide despite national upturn?

According to a recent survey by the Washington-based Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc. (CFP), Americans anticipate the national economy will be more likely to improve than decline during the next six months. But as Bloomberg indicates, the bad news is that these exact same Americans lack faith in their own personal finances. Americans worry that savings, college money and retirement arrangements are simply beyond their kin. Article source – The economy may be increasing, but what about our personal finances by Personal Money Store.

Personal finances don’t light up the headlines like recession busting

The CFP found that 44 percent of people expect the U.S. economy to rise before their personal finances find relief, while 28 percent have a doom and gloom outlook. CFP chair Robert Glovsky told Bloomberg that “Americans are usually hopeful, and much of the economic news leads us to conclude that we are out of the recession, and a double dip is unlikely”.

But this optimism doesn’t stick to the personal finance problem, it seems. Consumer confidence is on an upswing and unemployment is down slightly – at least what has been declared – yet two-thirds of the CFP poll respondents are gripping over some of the big questions of personal finances. Many consumers believe they need cash until payday loan, but are frequently ineligible for a bank loan because of the still-tight credit market. They may have found that a poor credit personal loan is a viable way out of the problem, but this doesn’t bode well if there is no future plan to deal with emergencies that prey upon personal finances.

A three-pronged personal finance nightmare

CFP survey findings from the 1,000-member sample group (aged 18 and over) showed that most feared whether they’d be able to save money, pay for college and prepare for a financially stable retirement. Adding to the worries surrounding their personal finances, 80 percent of respondents felt that Congress and federal regulators hadn’t taken an active enough role in pushing legislation to regulate financial markets. However, various media sources indicate a reform bill may pass through Congress soon.

Sources

bloomberg.com/news/2010-07-13/americans-are-more-optimistic-about-economy-than-own-finances-survey-says.html

cfp.net/media/release.asp?id=253