63% of Americans would be ruined by a surprise $500 expense

Fucking pathetic.

This shit honestly makes me sick.

>>1079843
>37% of Americans would NOT be ruined by a surprise $500 expense

>>1079843
My sister, brother, father, and mother would all be in trouble.

I don't understand how they did this to themselves.

Define ruin. Like, I could weather a $500 expense but I'd really prefer not to.

>>1079843
How is this even possible? At worst if I were working a shit job I'd put it on a credit card and pay it back over 3 or 4 months.

>>1079843
Real median wage has stagnated since like 1980, and that's not even counting the inflation in housing expenses. If you factor that in real median wage has declined since 1980, and most people are up to their nose in debt trying to maintain an ok lifestyle with not enough coming in. I really don't know how anyone paying attention even occasionally could be unaware of this.

>>1079913
>Most people are in debt trying to maintain a normal lifestyle

Lol Berniefag already here?

Most people are in debt because they have an attitude of "I'll figure it out later/someone else will take care of it". So they spend all their money on luxury goods then when they break their leg and can't work they cry about how the "system" is unfair.

>>1079913
>maintain an ok lifestyle

you mean, buying lottery tickets, coffees and donuts, fast food for lunch, eating out 3+ times a week, buying brand new luxury cars and designer clothes while paying the minimum for credit card payments.

oh, such is life

>>1079913
>most people are up to their nose in debt
These "most people" you speak of are trying to live beyond their means, not "live an ok lifestyle".
See >>1079921

>>1079918
You know, it's fine and all to claim that the reason the US became a nation of indebtedness is because of some personal flaw Americans have, but at the end of the day that really doesn't make a difference whatsoever in whether or not the economy will be destroyed when everyone defaults.

Shouting "PEOPLE NEED TO CHANGE THEIR WAYS" into the wind isn't good policy.

>>1080019
So what do you suggest?

Shouting "fuck the system it's the systems fault people are irresponsible" as if this could ever change?

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>>1079894


>Define ruin

I'm guessing if you have rent to pay, food, gas, etc. All of a sudden 40% of your monthly income has to go to something else.

You would have to cut back on a lot of things, probably have to use the bus for a whole two months! That's devastating enough for me.

>>1080051
>He earns $1000/month with no savings

Lol

>>1080025
How is that possibly the alternative? Enacting policy that encourages wage growth in the middle class and adopting a monetary and fiscal policy that encourages saving instead of spending are both possible policies which would help the issue.

Do you honestly think it's a coincidence that countries with the tightest monetary and fiscal policies have the least amounts of personal debt? That Germans and Japanese save while Americans are the most indebted people in the world?

Do you honestly believe that in the last 50 years Americans have anomalously become the most irresponsible people? That our government's policies have had nothing to do with it?

>>1080019
>>1080025
An adult making a mess and pouting over it like a petulant child is one of the most pathetic refusals of responsability a grown person can demonstrate. If you are employed at anything above minimum wage, count yourself lucky. You must ooze entitlement in interviews.

>>1080060
We have some of the most well-funded marketing in the world as well as a culture that increasingly uses credit to make even everyday purchases. This is hardly an issue of government policy. It's an example of consumer capitalism becoming ever more efficient at getting people to buy products, even when they don't have the money to do so. If money can be made on the inability of people to control their spending, why shouldn't it be so? This is arguably the backbone of consumer capitalism.

>>1079918
Le berniefag weedsmoker amirite XDDddDDDDdddddd. Le there's nothing with being homeless. Lol y r u so poor u lazy bum. xDddddDdd lol praise jesus

>>1080105
Being homeless in a first world country is a choice.

Try taking more responsibility for your choices.

>>1079918
>>1079921
>implying the average person in the richest country in the world shouldn't be able to afford coffee and take-away food without putting them in the poor house
>implying it's not just people trying to maintain the same standard of living they grew up with during a 3-4 decade period of decreasing real wages

>>1080146
>implying they aren't able to afford it but rather mismanaging their expenses and thinking minimum wage jobs should be worked well into 30's and 40's and should be able to sustain a family and luxury goods

>>1080148
>implying there are even enough non minimum wage jobs for all these people
It's a travesty that in the so-called richest country in the world the bulk of people can't even have a family without subjecting themselves to crushing debt.

>>1080164
Well what do you propose?

Minimum wage jobs are for students and immigrants. You should be able to obtain a useful skillset that can command above minimum wage if you are past 25 years of age.

I mean cmon, how is there 30+ year olds working mcds? What did they do their whole life? If they have no skills or abilities any better than s highschool kid, why would they get paid any more when a highschool kid can be hired to do the exact same job?

I believe this. My brother is always hitting me up for money because of unexpected expenses that crop up. He's married, 2 kids in the house. But something always is happening. One month they had an unexpected bill. Another month they needed groceries.

I make way less than he does. He has a factory job that pays decent, and they're on welfare. I'm one step to NEET, do odd jobs around town, not on welfare, and live in a trailer, but I always have about $5,000 in the bank.

>>1080168
>You should be able to obtain a useful skillset that can command above minimum wage if you are past 25 years of age.
The problem is more a shortage of jobs than a shortage of skills. Some people in minimum wage jobs have skills and qualifications, there just aren't enough jobs around where they can utilise them.

A lot of people have this perception that it should be easy for anyone to get a decent job if they make an effort. And that might be true. But there's a big difference between saying 'anyone' can get a job, and saying 'everyone' can get a job.
Fundamentally, there are more people than jobs so it's a competetive process. There are things a person can do to get ahead in that process, but that necessarily means that some other person falls behind them.

>>1079843
So does that mean are all those people already in debt and marked as credit risks?
Otherwise I guess you could easily get a personal loan for 500 bucks from your bank to cover your emergency.

>>1080168
>Well what do you propose?
Stop letting in gazillions of mexicans and impose an import tariff on third-world imported goods to shore up skilled/unskilled manual labour and manufacturing.

>>1080227
>Stop letting in gazillions of mexicans and impose an import tariff on third-world imported goods to shore up skilled/unskilled manual labour and manufacturing.
Mainly this just fucking should be done because I'm pissed as fuck that megacorps get away with paying third-world rates for manual labour and manufacturing but still want to sell at first-world prices. Government should never have allowed our industry (and the public) to be reamed this hard in the bung-hole.

>>1079843
Feels smug man.

>first year with real job making 46k
>in one year pay off 12k student loan and buy a car for 7k in cash
>tfw 27 and 0 debt, saving/investing 30k per year now

>>1079843
Bullshit propaganda. They must have done their survey in the most destitute Detroit ghettos or something.
Most Americans who have a job, have five to six digit savings or assets. Even if you browse pol or biz you see that most people are at least well off, some are even rich.

500 bux is like a cell phone. Not even enough to buy a gaming rig or take a vacation and people are buying stuff left and right. What is this bullshit?!

That can't possibly be true just based on the how often a $500 expense happens.

>>1080277
yeah I'm calling bullshit too, this is like when they said that 70% of americans had less than $1000 in a savings account and made it seem like no one had any savings when in reality no one keeps money in a savings account anymore because it gives you jack shit for interest.

>>1080273
>bragging about living at home with your parents
I don't think you qualify for smug level yet anon, but you are doing a good job I'll give you that

>>1080277
>>1080313
>>1080326

It isn't bullshit, even people making 40k often live paycheck to paycheck and blow their money on stupid shit like car leases

>>1080329
I live in a friend's basement for $220/montth :^)

>>1080326
I hate to break it to you anon, but it's not bullshit. I've worked at a large lending bank for years so I've seen the full spectrum of american stupidity.

Is the $500 figure a little low? probably. clickbait article? probably. but I would say the majority of americans are a cool $1k-2k away from financial ruin. americans are so addicted to debt that they don't know how to function without it. the whole system is built around it.

paycheck to paycheck is the "norm," and being house/rent poor while making minimum payments on everything is the norm too. I've seen people who make 2-3x more than I do with $100k+ in credit card debt to their name. people are idiots anon, you can't trust people.

>>1080332
Also people forget that the "average joe" finances everything

car payments, house payments, cc debt payments

>>1080333
the one good thing about student loan bubble is I think millennials have learned to fear and hate debt, unlike the generations before them who literally bathe themselves in it.

most of my coworkers are 10-20 years older than me and it's quite apparent how different our feelings are. they think I'm nuts that I want to be debt free - because that means I'm not going to buy a house or new low-tier luxury sedan which is what I should be doing in their mind.

most of the millennials are still probably fucked and won't be able to pay off their debt for years, but I think they will be a lot more responsible and conservative with money once they do pay it off.

>>1080338
>I think they will be a lot more responsible and conservative with money once they do pay it off

so never

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>>1080060
>Do you honestly believe that in the last 50 years Americans have anomalously become the most irresponsible people?
yes

>>1080333
I suppose that's true, I never realized how bad it was until I saw some advertisements for furniture recently where they didn't even have the total cost of the furniture on the ad, just the monthly payment.

I mean who even finances furniture?

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>>1080346
it's a nigger trap

>>1080333
Never understood this.
Always paid cash for everything, including my car.
Didn't have a credit card until I was 28.

>>1080237
> not using the internet to find these companies that make things dirt cheap
> not using it to buy them at third world prices
> not flipping then in the first world at first world prices

>tfw 22 and have $10k in savings
I don't think the number is as high as it says, but there are definitely people who literally can't into handling money.

It's so sad, it's almost comical

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>>1079843
>let's spin everything to be about jews

>>1080331
>using the smiley with a carat nose

>>1080609
Fuck off sensitive pussy. He didn't say shit about kikes.

>>1080348
DAT interest rate

>>1080348
>Buying a TV in 2016

Lol

>>1080612
You can't be serious.

>>1079894
As in you drain your bank account down to the last $100 before you get your paycheck, rinse, repeat. I see a lot of people who have less than $1000 and the shit in their apartment as the only things to their names. They don't have the assets and they're sure as hell not getting any credit. Sometimes it's because they have a bad life situation/bad job/no job, other times it's because they have expensive tastes, other times they are just unwilling or unable to save. Alternately, they do have credit they have maxed out / will never pay off if they use it so it will just become a lifelong interest expense. So imagine how much it fucks you up when you lose your entire next paycheck when you already have no money, no credit/fucked credit, and nothing of value.

Basically what >>1080332 said. The numbers seem inflated and clickbaity but it's not that far from the truth that more people than you think would be wrecked by a relatively small unexpected expense because they don't have anything set up to absorb it.

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>>1080609
>all of American culture and economy has developed to completely revolve around debt
>this happens to benefit an industry that has been known to be a relatively large number of a particular ethnic group
>this ethnic group has also been known across the world for manipulating societies for financial gain

B-BUT IDS NOT DA JOOS, EBOL NAZI!!

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>>1080612
>>1080705

>>1080705
keyword "relatively".

Ha! I felt like going out to dinner last night and spent $500. Must suck to have to worry about how much you're spending.

>>1080726
That's just wasteful m8.

>>1080726
wtf did you spend $500 on?

>>1080690
Shut up penny grabber.

>>1080687
>60hz 40" LCD TV for almost $900
I think that was probably taken around 2005-2007

>>1080729
how so?

>>1080731
Foie gras appetizers, steaks, salad course, dessert course, a few bottles of wine and some after dinner cordials

I went with my wife so it wasn't just $500 on myself. Drinks were almost half of it.

>>1081199
you drank a few bottles of wine just you and your wife? jesus I'm borderline alcoholic and stop at 1 bottle.

>>1081216
We didn't finish the bottles. We usually get one to pair with early courses and one for entree course. I will admit that can be wasteful if we only have a few sips per bottle. But how poor would I look if we asked to "wrap up" the leftover wine?

>>1080726
>>1081199
>>1081237
>Pretending to be rich on an anonymous Cryptocurrency shilling imageboard

Oh come on. How do you even spend $500? My favorite restaurant is only $55 per person and is an all you can Brazilian steakhouse

>>1079921
I like how eating out 3 of 21 meals is suddenly extravagance beyond extravagance.

>>1081250
It gets pricey.

Eating out 3-4 times can easily equal an entire month's worth of food for one person.

Especially when you're supposedly struggling so hard financially it's a pretty bad decision to make.

>"Omg I can barely pay rent and a $500 expense would RUIN me!!"
>Spends hundreds of dolalrs per month unnecessarily anyway

>>1081240
>How do you even spend $500?
It depends on where you live.
I went to Nobu last week, and the Omakase & drinks set us back $650, before tip.
They charge it because they know people will pay.

>>1081257
Those prices seem like memes, seems like you're just paying for prestige rather than actual quality.

I'd very much struggle to find higher quality in that food than my favorite all you can eat brazilian steakhouse and yet the price is several times more.

>>1081253
Maybe we have different definitions of eating out. I mean a Whopper or a pizza somewhere. That's $10 or less at a time.

>>1081260
>seems like you're just paying for prestige rather than actual quality
There's much truth to this.
It's kind of like a $250 a night hotel room versus one that's $500 (assume same size).
Is the $500 one REALLY twice as good? Twice?
I say fuck no.

>>1081240
Your personal preference has absolutely nothing to do with how much one can spend at dinner. New York (where I live), London, Tokyo, or any city worth its salt has tons of restaurants where $500 is nothing to spend on a meal.

I would explain it to you further but I don't have the time or the crayons.

>>1081260
Maybe you've contracted Zika from all that Brazilian garbage you're eating

>>1081267
>Is NYC richfag who spends $500 on dinner like it's nothing
>Posts on /biz/, a literal containment board for cryptos and "How do i get rich plz", "pick my major for me /biz/" and "I have $30 and want to make $30,000,000, what do I do first?"

Yeah ok buddy. If you believe it you can achieve it tho, rite?

>>1081266
I think it's like some clothing items.

Like there's $300+ belts/boots that are amazingly high-quality and last forever and they cost so much BECAUSE of the quality. And then Louis Vuitton and D&G which is the exact same Chinese shit just with a logo stamped on it.

/biz/ - Fine Dining

>>1081274
not saying you're wrong but keep in mind you're also the guy berating him on an anonymous taiwanese ethereum containment board

>>1081274
>they cost so much BECAUSE of the quality
That part is definitely worth some sort of premium, above what the average version would cost.
But a large percentage is the prestige. In the fashion industry, prices vary wildly between labels using the same materials.

>>1081280
I believe the earthquake in Taiwan has returned the board to its original Cambodian Origami roots.

>>1081274
usually i like to offer advice on threads about how to be an actuary or how to save for retirement

99% of this board can be ignored, you're right on that point.

>>1081280
I'm not the one bragging about being rich on a memeboard.

>>1081285
Seems kinda pathetic desu. If you really are rich that must be a terrible way to spend your time.

I'd hope that if I ever got rich I would escape 4chan and stop visiting/posting on it.

>>1081283
>But a large percentage is the prestige. In the fashion industry, prices vary wildly between labels using the same materials.

That's what I mean tho. Discerning between actual quality and just picking something because "lol it's expensive that means it's probably good"

>>1081288
How I spend my time is a contributing factor to why I'm wealthy enough to do what i want. if you think that's pathetic, i can't imagine how much worse your life decisions must be.

>>1081299
>How I spend my time is a contributing factor to why I'm wealthy enough to do what i want

You aren't wealthy. You are a roleplaying NEET/college student, just like everyone else here including me.

>Inb4 I own my own business, buying and selling Ethereum

>>1081288
>I would escape 4chan and stop visiting
You would think, but some of us came in to money years after discovering this site.
Makes it harder to leave.

>>1081316
What a pitiful existence.

I wouldn't wish an eternity of 4chan on my worst enemy.

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>>1081353

>>1081264
>Maybe we have different definitions of eating out. I mean a Whopper or a pizza somewhere. That's $10 or less at a time.
This, I didn't know 3-4 pizzas cost the same as a whole month's food budget. Nigger has to be eating nothing but rice for that to be the case.

>>1079843
>That OP
>That ID: juu

kek

>how do Americans say they would cope in such a situation? About 23 percent said they would cut back on spending in other areas, while 15 percent said they would need to rely on credit cards. Another 15 percent said they would turn to friends or family for help.


It's the same shit in Switzerland, nearly all my friends (25-30) spend all their money on useless shit or vacations and finish the month at fucking 0, but if needed they could just spare for 1-2 months and be fine.

I cringe when I hear people saying they can't live with 5k$ a month here, they really believe it.
I live with 2.2k and know a friend who does with 1.8k. Guess what we have a full bank account and could stop working for years while living the same.

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>>1079843
THIS IS NOW THE JEW MEME GENERAL

>>1081240
>$55 per person
> all you can Brazilian steakhouse
fogo REPRESENT

>>1082285
Da fuck is fogo