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☆ The 'phantom debt' of buy now, pay later is growing and will soon hit some Americans hard
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-10 | by ( Cork Gaines | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Buy now, pay later plans gained popularity in 2023 as an alternative to high-interest credit cards. Buy now, pay later use surged recently and those bills are now dueThe use of buy now, pay later plans skyrocketed during the 2023 holiday season. According to Adobe, which tracks online sales, buy now, pay later plans use was up 47% on Black Friday and 43% on Cyber Monday. According to PYMNTS' survey, 39.6% of respondents used buy now, pay later plans for clothing and accessories and 33.7% used them for groceries. Buy now, pay later debt can be advantageous if used correctly.

Persons: —, Rather, Peter Cade, PYMNTS, Tim Quinlan, Shannon Seery Grein, Selcuk, Mark Luschini, Janney Montgomery Scott, Maria Bartiromo, Luschini, Warren Buffett, Buffett, I've Organizations: Service, Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, Adobe, Household Economics, Science Research Network, Economic, Anadolu Agency, Getty, Wells, US Locations: Wells Fargo

☆ Carrying a credit card balance is costing you $1,140 per year — and is about to get much worse
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-05 | by ( Cork Gaines | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

However, credit card balances are especially worrisome because they are going to keep getting worse. That means the average American could be spending $1,140 every year on credit card interest and fees alone. Americans have been accruing a lot of credit card debt at a terrible timeAccording to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Americans had nearly $1.1 trillion in credit card debt in the third quarter of this year. Credit card interest rates, which had already been at their highest level since the mid-1990s, started soaring even higher. But with credit card debt going through the roof, the blissful spending could come to a screeching halt.

Persons: couldn't, —, Gary Coronado, LendingTree, Ted Rossman, Biden Organizations: Service, SoFi Bank, Federal Reserve, Federal Reserve Bank of New, Federal Reserve Board, Fed, New York, New York Fed, Consumer Financial, CNN, Household Economics Locations: WalletHub, Federal Reserve Bank of New York, delinquencies

☆ Americans broke a record for spending on Black Friday, but it's just hiding a bigger problem for the economy
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Cork Gaines | Noah Sheidlower | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Many are delaying the cost as buy now, pay later programs are expected to have their biggest month ever. Many are paying via "buy now, pay later" platforms such as Klarna or Afterpay, which let shoppers pay in installments every week or month. Buy now, pay later also allows people to borrow less expensively as they get the pricing interest-free if paid off in time. Indeed, the Fed's "2022 Survey of Household Economics and Decisionmaking" found that 83% of respondents paid off their buy now, pay later programs on time. Compounding the problem is that people tend to spend more when using buy now, pay later programs, suggesting an overconfidence in what they can afford.

Persons: —, Salesforce, Beryl Tomay, Klarna, Mark Luschini, Janney Montgomery Scott, Maria Bartiromo, Luschini, Michael Landsberg, Landsberg Bennett, Kraig, Foreman Organizations: Black, Service, Adobe, Mastercard, CNBC, Business, Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, Household Economics, Social Science Research Network, Wealth Management Locations: Landsberg

☆ Americans broke a record for spending on Black Friday, but it is just hiding a bigger problem for the economy
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Cork Gaines | Noah Sheidlower | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

But the steady ebbing of inflation hasn't translated into good news for either President Joe Biden or the Federal Reserve when it comes to public opinion. They're just going up at a slower rate," Fed Governor Christopher Waller said last week when asked at a research conference about common public misconceptions. Inflation expectations have fallen, according to a New York Fed survey but remain well above the central bank's 2% target. Both Waller and Fed Governor Lisa Cook took note of the public mood last week in similar comments about the expectation for prices to fall, which they don't frequently do. Reuters GraphicsBut if inflation readings continue to show a slowdown, the Fed could put more weight on sustaining the strength of the job market.

Persons: Joe Biden, They're, Christopher Waller, That's, Biden, Jeff Jones, Waller, Lisa Cook, Derek Tang, Howard Schneider, Dan Burns, Paul Simao Organizations: Federal Reserve, Fed, Reuters, Democratic, Gallup, Reuters Graphics, New, FOCUS, Biden, Thomson Locations: U.S, shutdowns

☆ Some companies have demanded employees return to the office. The outcome is worse than we thought.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Gleb Tsipursky | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

It echoed the Greenhouse report's findings: a majority of employees, 76%, would actively seek a new job if flexible-work policies were retracted. Upon running an internal survey, they realized that, aside from better compensation and career-advancement opportunities, employees were seeking better flexible-work policies. Their story echoes the collective message from all three reports: companies must adapt to flexible-work policies or risk being swept away. The Greenhouse report bears testament to this, with 76% of employees open to job hunting if their company rolled back flexible-work policies. As we set sail into the future of work, flexibility isn't just a passing trend; it's a necessity, the new standard.

Persons: Greenhouse, Unispace Organizations: Companies, Service, Federal Reserve's Survey, Household Economics, New York Times Locations: Wall, Silicon

☆ More Americans Are Struggling Financially, as Inflation Takes a Toll
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( Ben Casselman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Americans have jobs. The share of U.S. adults who said they were doing “at least OK financially” fell sharply last year, to 73 percent from 78 percent in 2021, according to the latest Federal Reserve survey of Americans’ financial well-being, released on Monday. The erosion in financial health was broad-based, cutting across racial and ethnic lines, educational categories and income groups. The data, from the Fed’s Survey of Household Economics and Decisionmaking, echoes other surveys showing that Americans feel glum about the economy and their own finances. But it provides new details on how the economic crosscurrents of a strong job market and rising prices are affecting families.

☆ Inflation has eroded U.S. households' financial security, Fed survey shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The Fed launched the "Survey of Household Economics and Decisionmaking" in 2013. Fed officials have raised interest rates aggressively in response and have repeatedly expressed their determination to bring inflation to heel by whatever means necessary. Indeed, overall one-third of households cited inflation as their main financial challenge, up more than fourfold from 2016. Sixty-three percent said they would use cash for such a cost, down from a record high 68% in 2021. Meanwhile, the survey's measures of household incomes and respondents' sense of the job market showed more adults last year received or asked for a pay increase or promotion.

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