I am finally getting around to analyzing my first survey results. Thank you so much for participating. I really do appreciate it. I am planning on doing more surveys & giveaways in the future so make sure you’re following me on social media and stay tuned!
1. How much do you have in a savings account (not including retirement)?
I think its so great that 33% of participants have $1,001-$5000 in savings and 25% of participants have over $10,000 in savings! I am glad people understand importance of an emergency fund and saving money for future events.
17% of participants have $0-500 in savings but that is okay. The time to start building your emergency fund and saving for a house, wedding, college fund, or vacation is now!
2. How much debt do you have?
34% of participants have $10,000-$50,000 of debt and 33% have over $100,000 of debt. If you are someone who has over $100,000 don’t freak out! Spend some time developing a realistic plan that you will stick to. Set milestones and small rewards to keep you motivated. You’ve got this!
3. Do you contribute to a retirement fund monthly?
It’s exciting to see that most people contribute to a retirement fund monthly! If you don’t contribute is it because you don’t know where to start? You don’t think it fits into your budget right now? You don’t really care? Let me know!
If you have questions about how to pick a retirement fund that is best for you let me know! I am here to help! It is super important to start as early as you can even if you are only contributing a small amount each month. Compound interest is an amazing thing!
4. What area of personal finance do you struggle with most?
23% of participants said they struggle with paying off student loans and 18% said they struggle with saving money. If you are one of those people the good news is you are not alone! Most people (including myself) struggle when it comes to personal finance. It is okay to struggle. You need to decide what you are going to do about it. Write down what you are struggling with. Brainstorm goals. Write down steps to reach those goals. Make sure you break the steps down into small tasks. Set dates for each goal and tell someone! Make sure you have someone holding you accountable.
5. What do you want to learn more about?
39% of participants said they want to learn more about ways to stay accountable. I think this is so important when setting goals in general, not just personal finance goals. With personal finance it is even harder because most people don’t know your financial situation. They don’t know when you spend too much, miss a payment, or max out your credit card. You feel like you can get away with more because no one knows.
When you are trying to reach a goal at work people can see if you are making progress, miss a deadline, or don’t reach the goal. It is visible.
This is why accountability is so important for personal finance goals. Tell someone you are friends with. Get involved on social media and find others who are in similar situations. Reach out to someone. Keep each other motivated. Reach out to me. Community is key. You aren’t supposed to do life alone.
6. How often do you look at or update your budget?
42% of participants said they do not have a budget and 25% said they check their budget a few times a week.
If you don’t have a budget the time to create one is now. Budgets do not confine you. A budget is a tool used to help you achieve financial freedom. It helps you understand how you are spending your money. A budget helps you visually see your current financial situation. You can adjust it so you can change your future financial situation.
If you have a budget but do not check it regularly I recommend checking it very briefly once a day. It will take you 5-10 minutes to check your bank accounts and make sure you are sticking to your budget. You can also adjust it to account for unexpected expenses or if your actual expense is higher than your expected expense. If you went out to lunch on Wednesday and you didn’t have that in your budget, you can add it and adjust another expected expense so you don’t go over budget that month.
7. How often do you check your credit score?
50% of participants said they rarely check their credit score.I think your credit score is an area of personal finance that most people don’t know much about. Two times your credit score is checked are when you are applying for a loan to determine your interest rate and when you are applying for a credit card to see if you meet the minimum requirements. There are a few other times your credit score is used so it is important to make sure your credit score is high (a post for another time).
Unless you are planning on applying for something soon or moving you don’t need to check it as regularly as your bank accounts but I still check mine at least once a month, sometimes twice a month. I want to see if anything changed and if it did the reason why. It is important to understand your credit score.
There are some websites that you can check your credit score for free. Check out my post “5 Helpful Resources for Financial Planning” to learn more.
Demographics
Kids: 33% of participants have one kid, 25% have no kids, 25% have two kids
Age: 42% of participants are between 31-40, 25% of participants are between 26-30, 25% of participants are over 50
Gender: 92% of participants are female
Thank you again for helping me with this survey. It was super informative and I am excited to write more posts focused on what you want to learn about. Make sure you are following me on social media for upcoming giveaways!
