Data and Research March 2, 2018

More Than Half of Americans Would Like to Save More

Among those who said they would like to save more, 56% said retirement was a top reason; however, LIMRA found that debt is a major obstacle preventing many people from saving as much as they would like.

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Fifty-four percent of Americans want to save more money, the LIMRA Secure Retirement Institute found in a survey. Other financial priorities are to push down debt, create a long-term financial plan and build better spending habits.

Among those who said they would like to save more, 56% said retirement was a top reason. However, LIMRA found that debt is a major obstacle preventing many people from saving.

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According to the Federal Reserve Bank, U.S. household consumer debt has reached $13 trillion. The LIMRA survey found that 71% of American workers hold some type of non-mortgage debt, such as a car loan, student loan or credit card debt. Sixty-percent said that this type of debt was negatively impacting their ability to save for retirement.

Among those with non-mortgage debt, only 31% are saving for retirement outside of their workplace retirement plan, whereas 69% of those who do not carry any non-mortgage debt are saving for retirement outside of their workplace retirement plan. Among Millennials, only 23% are saving for retirement outside of the workplace retirement plan. LIMRA believes this could be because many Millennials carry large student loans and credit card debt.

Despite this rather dismal outlook with regards to retirement savings, 50% of those surveyed said they felt financially secure, 60% said they were optimistic about their financial future, and 50% said they are confident they will be able to live the retirement lifestyle they aim for.

Break from the Grind March 1, 2018

A Little Friday File Fun

And now it's time for FRIDAY FILES!
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In Boston, Massachusetts, prosecutors say a Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority driver reported a man pulled him out of his trolley and punched him repeatedly. The attacker wore a mask and carried a plastic pumpkin. According to the Associated Press, authorities say they lifted fingerprints from the pumpkin left behind at the scene to find the man. However, the man said the trolley driver paid him $2,000 to attack him while wearing a Halloween mask so the driver could fraudulently collect workers’ compensation and disability insurance. A Suffolk County grand jury indicted the driver on charges of insurance fraud, workers’ compensation fraud, misleading a police investigation and perjury.

 

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In Little Rock, Arkansas, a man who performs shows as the late superstar Elvis A. Presley is now filed to run as the Libertarian nominee challenging Arkansas Republican Rep. Rick Crawford. The man’s name—Elvis D. Presley.

 

In Oaxaca, Mexico, an interesting marriage ceremony took place. All the grooms were trees; the brides are all activists. The mass marriage was meant to draw attention to illegal logging, a serious problem in Mexico, where one-third of the land area is covered by forest, U.K.’s Metro reports.

 

In Winston-Salem, North Carolina, judges, sheriff deputies and court clerks showed up for a Forsyth County court session Monday, but no jurors did. The Winston-Salem Journal reports the county failed to mail notices to the 1,700 or so prospective jurors needed to hear cases this week. After no one showed up for jury duty Monday, Forsyth County officials made a plea through a local television station for volunteers, but only 19 people showed up Tuesday. One judge in the county of 370,000 residents even sent deputies to a mall to seek volunteers, but found no other takers. Trials were postponed until next week.

 

In Peoria, Arizona, police officers were called to a gas station for possible shoplifting last Friday. Authorities say as officers arrived, the suspects took off running. The pair ran along the side of a building and jumped a fence—landing in a secure parking lot of a police station and quickly into custody.
Wonder who was more afraid, the man or the bear?

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I dare you to not say “Awwwww” when you see this one.

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A marriage proposal on Mario Maker?

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