Most Americans Say They Will Not Spend Their Stimulus Checks
The majority of Americans plan to save their stimulus checks or use them to pay off debt, says a new survey.
A CNN/Opinion Research Corp. poll found that 41% of respondents plan to use their rebates to pay off bills, and 32% will put the money in savings. Just 21% of those polled intend to spend the money, while 3% said they will donate the extra money to charity.This could cause some problems:
Jared Bernstein, an Economic Policy Institute senior economist, notes that taxpayers have in the past spent half to two-thirds of their rebate checks. However, he points out that the current economic conditions are unique.What will you do with your stimulus payment? Have you already spent it?"We've never done this in a period when American households are so deeply indebted," he said. "While [saving the rebate] is a valiant thing to do, what you want them to do is spend it."
Rebate checks won't get spent [CNNMoney] (Thanks, Matthew!)
(Photo:stirwise)
Post a comment
Comments:
Smart people will pay off high APR debt instead of getting taxed on it buying stuff locally. Debt is also more productive than putting it in savings since the crappy interest in those is dwarfed by the 9.9% and UP rates your cards and store credit might have.
I've seen a ton of news stories about how people in the US have a ton of debt and how this is bad and we should be paying off our debt. Now ... it's bad to pay off our debts?
They should just say "No matter what you do with your money we won't be happy and we'll write stories telling you not to do it."
I'll end up spending mine on a few home repairs that I've been putting off and replacing a broken dishwasher. Not exactly what you'd call discretionary spending, but it will prevent me from having to use any credit. I'll probably use the CC to by the dishwasher though, just to get the protections, but it will be paid off the next day.
These people obviously hate America. Don't they know the g'ovt is only giving them money so they can waste it on materialistic frivolities to save our economy? C'mon people... don't save... spend, spend, spend!!!
/sarcasm
Does this really surprise anyone? A majority of people I know will be saving their checks - myself included.
I don't spend my tax income checks, why should this be any different?
I'm paying off my credit card. That's it. The rest goes in the bank.
Mine is going towards the purchase of a beater so I can sell my financed car and use that money to pay of credit cards.
Pay off some credit card debt. Only rich people can afford to spend in this economy.
Even if people pay off debt, wouldn't that potentially increase consumer spending by freeing up more credit and money that would have gone to interest payments? Why does everyone have this idea that it's not going to work to stimulate the economy if it isn't spent immediately?
For this to have been a true economic stimulus, instead of checks, the government should have sent out gift cards redeemable only for goods or services. Maybe partner with someone who does gift cards for a living... one of those private/public sector partnerships everyone seems to be so fond of these days.
I'm buying lottery tickets!
Just kidding.
I'm doing my patriotic duties and getting a Sony PS3. :)
My plan is to stimulate the Kentucky economy by buying 600 dollars worth of bourbon!
It seems that, on a microeconomic scalel, the best thing to do is to save or pay off debt, but that the government wants everyone to do what it considers the best thing on a macroeconomic scale - spend the money. People tend to do what's best for them, and it's hard to blame them for saving/paying off debt, which is exactly what I would do if I qualified for a check.
It's going into our savings for a down payment on a house, which we hopefully will be looking to buy later this year. Of course, assuming house prices come down. Sellers where I live apparently haven't gotten the memo yet that they paid too much for their houses.
The thing is, I know a lot of people *say* they are saving it or using to pay off debt, and I don't doubt that people who read this site will probably do that, but I think a lot of people in general will end up spending it after all.
Stimulating local economy here, will pay a contractor for a new driveway.
I'm probably getting $1800, married, 2 kids, and didn't make over the 175k cutoff.
How will I spend it?
1. $1500 will go to pay property taxes. So it's going from the US Govt to the CA govt.
2. The $300 that's left: put it in the bank. We don't have any debt other than our mortgage and a car loan to the in-laws (0% interest) so it'll do better there earning .00005% interest than being spent.
Actually it'll go into our ING savings acct so it'll get a few % interest.
@LewisNYC: Interesting idea.. government gift cards. lol.
I'm throwing mine at a credit card. It just feels like the right thing to do.
I'm going to Disney World! (not kidding), planned and paid for though months before this was announced.
Mines going in savings. Only have 1 credit card and only have a couple of hundred on the balance, and I am still in my 0% for 6 months so I'm not paying any interest. Thought about buying a bunch of useless crap, but we already have a bunch of useless crap. Might buy some summer clothes for my son.
Savings account.
While this may not be good news for "W", I tend to believe the reports that most of these rebate checks will go toward personal balance sheet repair rather than the local mall.
Perhaps people have finally realized that credit cards and HELOCs eventually must be paid down? What's the next step in this progression? Maybe people will begin expecting their legislators to do the same with their tax dollars?
Nothing more than a pipe dream, you say? Perhaps, but it is such a pretty thought nevertheless...
I wasn't aware that one could pay off bills without spending money. This would be a great innovation.
Otherwise, the majority (76%) of Americans is spending their money.
probably will end up buying something with mine - only debt is a mortgage, and an extra 1200 between the wife and i wont even put a SCRATCH in that...
Survey data is notorious for being skewed because people give the socially acceptable response. CNN should have included as a response, "I plan to spend my money on bankruptcy attorneys and Red Lobster."
I'm putting mine in the savings account where I'm trying to scrape together $3k to start a Roth IRA. I need to buy a few things that I've been putting off, but I'll need to have bought them before the check comes. So it'll get plopped into savings.
My boyfriend is paying off his credit card.
I'd like to thank the gov't for paying off the remainder of my medical bills :)
My and my husband's Roth IRAs are getting a boost.
Remodeling a bathroom ....
If you are going to use it to pay down high interest debt or pay taxes, well those were debts you were going to pay anyway, right? So the net result is that your checking account is eventually going to be fatter by the amount of your rebate.
Unless you are suddenly going to start carrying more dough in your checking account, I'm gonna go ahead and guess that you will be spending that surplus over time anyway. The only folks who will not be spending the rebate are those who put it right into their savings or use it to pay down principle on an outstanding loan.
Just because you don't spend it right away on a big ticket item doesn't mean you aren't pumping it back into the economy.
Of course, with sinking interest rates, an uncertain stock market, inflation and the deteriorating dollar, I would argue that the smartest thing a debt free person could do with their rebate is to spend it immediately. But I doubt you will hear anyone advocate that on this forum.
I'm only getting $300 because no woman wants to marry me :(
I might just use it to buy a PS3.
Well, gee... The current administration has been harking on how we should spend spend spend the past seven years, and look where that got us.
Not that I personally heeded their advice over the term of this administration, as I had a bad feeling about the economy way back in 2001 and have been hunkering down since. I'm by no means sitting pretty, but I'm certainly in better shape than I was back then.
My rebate check? Gonna tick away at that debt a little more.
The REAL tragedy here is the fact that those who will spend will send this right back to China under the guise that they're stimulating the US economy, when in fact that they're only helping dig the hole much deeper...
Right into a "high interest"(stupid lowering interest rates) savings account for a house down payment.
I have absolutely NO debt & will be sticking mine into savings.
Savings account, to go towards the Finally, About Fucking Time You Move Out house fund. ;)
See here's where they went wrong with the stimulus plan. They are giving higher amounts to people the more kids they have, etc.
What they should have done is give more money to YOUNGER people. If you're middle aged with kids you are more likely to use this stimulus check to pay debts, not just blow it at the store.
Young people, on the other hand, are MUCH more likely to spend their cash outright on goods, which is the point of the stimulus plan. It's the high school and college kids working at the mall who should get the big checks!
Paying off debt (let's say debt at an average of 12%) with this check is the safe effect as making 12% on that money - those with non-mortgage debt (AKA me) should throw this stimulus check directly at that debt.
No Credit Card debt to pay off. I will probably buy an iphone and put the rest into savings.
I'm converting my check into Euros and waiting 3 months.
*zing*
@ElizabethD: Rich people don't get stimulus checks.
Cleary the govt got this all backwards. If they wanted this money back in the economy, they should have just given all the rich people checks instead.
@ChuckECheese: Exactly. Self-reporting is notoriously skewed. I suspect most of the checks will end up back in the retail economy, regardless of what people say now.
Giving tax money back to Americans: Good.
Giving tax money back to Americans without cutting an equal amount of bloated government spending: Bad.
Since we are debt free but the house, the stimulus money is going into the new roof and air conditioner fund for the two big-ticket items that will be coming up this Spring.
That being said, if you do have debt, by all means, apply that money toward it. You'll thank yourself later.
My check almost covers my tax burden. So I already spent it.
I will spend it... on mortgage/energy bills!