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Retirement remains top of mind for many Americans, whether they are approaching their so-called “golden years” or have many years to go before leaving the workforce. 

How much money a person needs to have saved to retire without financial stress is an important consideration in the retirement preparation process, and that can vary depending on various factors, including where someone intends to live and their retirement income sources.

A study released this week by GOBankingRates calculated the amount of money that a “comfortable” retirement would require without income from Social Security factored in and the associated yearly expenses a retiree would face in each U.S. state.

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The analysis comes as Social Security, a common source of retirement income, is looking at potential financing issues with its trust funds in the future. The trustees for Social Security and Medicare recently found that if Social Security’s Old-Age and Survivors Insurance and Disability Insurance trust funds were combined, the trust funds would be able to pay 100% of scheduled benefits until 2034, one year earlier than reported last year. After that, the trust funds would be able to pay only 81% of scheduled benefits, meaning Social Security recipients would see a mandatory 19% cut automatically. 

For the GOBankingRates study, the benchmark for a “comfortable” retirement was a person holding twice the amount of money as the cost of living expenses.

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Hawaii tops the list of where the most savings would be necessary to retire “comfortably” at 60 years old without Social Security, while West Virginia, nicknamed the Mountain State, required the least, it said. 

GOBankingRates found the nest egg that a person would need to accommodate a comfortable retirement at 60 years old sans Social Security in each state.

Alabama ($70,492 cost of living per year): $1,409,839 

Alaska ($110,457 cost of living per year): $2,209,137

Arizona ($100,281 cost of living per year): $2,005,627

Arkansas ($67,502 cost of living per year): $1,350,045

California ($155,117 cost of living per year): $3,102,333

Colorado ($114,744 cost of living per year): $2,294,882

Connecticut ($105,428 cost of living per year): $2,108,563

Delaware ($94,392 cost of living per year): $1,887,834

Florida ($97,119 cost of living per year): $1,942,374

Georgia ($86,005 cost of living per year): $1,720,096

Hawaii ($186,062 cost of living per year): $3,721,237

Idaho ($101,912 cost of living per year): $2,038,236

Illinois ($79,736 cost of living per year): $1,594,716

Indiana ($74,029 cost of living per year): $1,480,575

Iowa ($71,373 cost of living per year): $1,427,463

Kansas ($71,534 cost of living per year): $1,430,672

Kentucky ($71,410 cost of living per year): $1,428,204

Louisiana ($67,482 cost of living per year): $1,349,639

Maine ($98,612 cost of living per year): $1,972,231

Maryland ($101,991 cost of living per year): $2,039,812

Massachusetts ($136,626 cost of living): $2,732,517

Michigan ($73,780 cost of living per year): $1,475,595

Minnesota ($88,321 cost of living per year): $1,766,414

Mississippi ($65,523 cost of living per year): $1,310,451

Missouri ($73,667 cost of living per year): $1,473,335

Montana ($102,916 cost of living per year): $2,058,322

Nebraska ($76,792 cost of living per year): $1,535,846

Nevada ($103,661 cost of living per year): $2,073,215

New Hampshire ($110,761 cost of living per year): $2,215,216

New Jersey ($118,338 cost of living per year): $2,366,765

New Mexico ($81,627 cost of living per year): $1,632,542

New York ($105,619 cost of living per year): $2,112,384

North Carolina ($86,857 cost of living per year): $1,737,146

North Dakota ($78,734 cost of living per year): $1,574,682

Ohio ($73,120 cost of living per year): $1,462,391

Oklahoma ($69,161 cost of living per year): $1,383,214

Oregon ($111,541 cost of living per year): $2,230,814

Pennsylvania ($78,582 cost of living per year): $1,571,642

Rhode Island ($109,811 cost of living per year): $2,196,222

South Carolina ($81,586 cost of living per year): $1,631,721

South Dakota ($81,949 cost of living per year): $1,638,979

Tennessee ($81,474 cost of living per year): $1,629,482

Texas ($81,985 cost of living per year): $1,639,693

Utah ($110,623 cost of living per year): $2,212,458

Vermont ($97,999 cost of living per year): $1,959,971

Virginia ($96,141 cost of living per year): $1,922,813

Washington ($126,952 cost of living per year): $2,539,048

West Virginia ($64,715 cost of living per year): $1,294,300

Wisconsin ($84,485 cost of living per year): $1,689,700

Wyoming ($88,792 cost of living per year): $1,775,841

In early June, a Gallup survey found 50% of non-retired U.S. adults that own a retirement savings account felt they “expect to have enough to live comfortably in retirement.” 

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Confidence was lower among those that lacked a retirement savings account, with only 31% reporting they anticipated having sufficient funds for comfortable golden years. 

Eric Revell contributed to this report. 

How people tackle their finances can vary but, according to new research from PYMNTS, there are two ways that are most common.

PYMNTS found just 40% of American consumers are “planners,” meaning their strategy for money had more foresight. 

That figure has gone down compared to the roughly half who tackled their personal finances that way in February of last year, according to the outlet. 

Meanwhile, for 60% of consumers, financial matters are dealt with as they come, earning them the moniker “reactors,” PYMNTS reported. 

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For the former, they tended to have at least $2,500 saved and keep their credit card balances below $2,000 on average, as well as make regular payments on their balances, according to the outlet. 

The latter typically amassed higher balances and had lower amounts of savings, per PYMNTS. They also reported taking care of their credit card balances less frequently. 

The drop in “planners” could mean consumers are feeling more pain in their wallets, according to PYMNTS. 

The two groups typically had different priorities when it came to money, with retirement being front of mind for many so-called “planners” and knocking down debt being a focus for “reactors,” per the outlet. 

A separate report released earlier this month by Fidelity Investments found the average 401(k) account balance in the first quarter was $127,100, while the balances for IRA and 403(b) accounts averaged $121,983 and $115,424, respectively.

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Northwestern Mutual found in mid-April that Americans think they need $1.26 million saved to retire “comfortably.” 

PYMNTS reported that nearly one-third of financially-reactive consumers reportedly identified reducing their debt as a top priority. 

Americans collectively had $18.2 trillion in debt as of the first quarter of the year, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. 

For the other type of consumer, investments and savings accounted for 12% of what they financially allocated for themselves on a monthly basis, PYMNTS also reported.

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Additionally, the survey shed light on how different generations stacked up in terms of how they tackled finances, according to the outlet.

For Generation Z, 73% of those within that age group were considered “reactors,” it said.

Members of the Baby Boomer generation, meanwhile, were more likely to be “planners,” with the survey pegging the share in that generation at 54%. 

When it comes to income, more of those taking home big bucks have started seeing themselves as “reactors” as inflation and other factors weigh on them.

Approximately 52% of high-income consumers labeled themselves as “reactors” in the survey. 

The proportion of earners characterized as “planners” posted a 25% drop between February of last year and January of this year, according to PYMNTS.

The real median income for American households was over $80,600 in 2023, according to the latest data from the U.S. Census Bureau. 

Managing one’s finances can be challenging, especially when faced with conflicting — and often wrong — information fed to people, especially on social media. 

Buying into common misconceptions surrounding money can be harmful, putting someone on their back foot when it comes to financial health. 

Jonathan Kim, a personal finance expert and the head of finance at online savings platform Raisin, took aim at in an interview with FOX Business, including the idea that “it’s not worth saving unless you can put away a lot,” buy now, pay later being a good budgeting tool, and a high salary being synonymous with financial success.

He also pushed back against the suggestion that people do not need savings accounts and that saving money should not occur before someone is debt-free.

“Some of these thoughts about paying off debt before saving, and not having a full understanding of why you might need savings and why certain debt actually might not be terrible, I think, is a widespread thing,” Kim said.

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The misconception that “it’s just not worth saving right now unless you can put away a lot” is a common one that he said he has seen on social media. 

Kim said it’s “pretty easy to fall into this trap where you’re thinking, ‘If I can’t save X percent or X dollar amount, it’s just not worth the effort,’ and that’s a little too outcome-oriented for me.” 

He said consistency with saving was important, noting that even “starting with something like $10 a week can help build that financial resilience and can build a habit that sticks with you as you progress.” 

When it comes to high salaries and financial success, Kim said, there is “this myth and this propaganda” that a high salary equates to financial success when, in reality, financial health is more about managing money wisely. 

Taking home a big paycheck is “obviously a wonderful thing, but I think it’s also very true that lifestyle creep is a very, very real thing, and if you don’t have the financial discipline and conscious saving and spending habits, it’s actually quite easy to just let lifestyle creep happen to you, and you find yourself struggling financially even after you’ve gotten that raise or that promotion or that new job,” Kim said. 

Budgeting can be a helpful tool to prevent lifestyle creep, Kim said, while also pushing back on the idea that it has “to be perfect” to work. 

“You can have just a general understanding of what’s going in and what’s going out to get you started,” he said. “And once you have that tracked, if you look at it over time, you can see ‘oh, I was only spending X amount, now I’m spending X times two. What happened there?’”

He also said that budgeting helps people “spend intentionally” and does not mean someone has to forgo “everything that brings you joy” to solely focus on necessities. 

Kim touched on buy now, pay later services and whether it can be a good budgeting tool.

Buy now, pay later has become increasingly common in recent years as people look to split up and finance smaller purchases. 

“If you are buying now and paying later because you don’t have the money now, that means you can’t afford it,” Kim told FOX Business. “So if you can’t afford it today, you can’t afford it and so by that context, buy now, pay later encourages overspending, and that can lead to you accumulating debt, which then earns interest, and then you find yourself going down that rabbit hole of bad financial habits.” 

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He said that was “kind of intertwined” with another misconception of people having to pay off all their debt before socking away money as savings. 

“If you have high interest debt, like credit card debt, a variable mortgage, student loan debt, anything that could really hurt you or an interest rate can just go up, you certainly want to pay that off,” Kim said. “But at the same time, the other side is that you may be lucky enough to be a person where you got a mortgage five years ago and your mortgage rate is very, very low. In that sense, it wouldn’t make sense to pay that off immediately.”

Building savings while simultaneously making a dent in debt can be very beneficial.

Kim said it was important to have a financial plan and pay off debt but noted “things can happen in your life,” so setting up an emergency fund by saving can prevent the snowballing of debt and interest should something happen. 

He also said having a savings account was better than just using a checking account.

When someone keeps all their money in a checking account, it can be “actually easier to spend and harder to track your goals,” according to Kim. 

He noted balances in checking accounts can rise and fall with expenditures and income, making savings difficult to monitor. Many also offer very low or no interest on funds “so your money is actually not working for you,” according to Kim. 

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A dedicated savings account can establish a “physical boundary, in some senses, where you can see that that money is separate, and you can see it grow over time, which gives you a sense of accomplishment and keeps you going in some sense as it builds,” he said.

They can have high interest rates that will help the savings passively grow over time, he added.

Retirement account balances dipped in the first quarter due to stock market turbulence. Still, people kept socking away money for their retirement, according to new data from Fidelity Investments. 

The financial services company analyzed more than 50 million retirement accounts, finding that the average balances of 401(k), IRA and 403(b) accounts all saw small declines during the first three months of 2025. 

The average 401(k) account balance decreased 3% quarter over quarter to $127,100, according to Fidelity Investment’s Q1 2025 retirement analysis.

IRA accounts had average balances of $121,983 and 403(b) accounts held $115,424 on average in the first quarter, 4% and 2% lower than the prior quarter, respectively. 

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Fidelity largely attributed those declines to “market swings.” 

The market was turbulent during the first quarter amid uncertainty surrounding tariffs and other policy issues, including popular index funds. 

Still, retirement savings rates “stayed consistently high,” according to Fidelity. 

For 401(k) accounts, employee contribution rates hit 9.5% during the first quarter, with the employer contribution rate coming in at 4.8%, according to its analysis. 

Combined, the 14.3% savings rate for 401(k) accounts marked a “record” and the “closest it’s ever been to Fidelity’s suggested savings rate of 15%,” the company said. 

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Holders of 403(b) accounts, meanwhile, had a rate of 11.8% on average. 

“Although the first quarter of 2025 posed challenges for retirement savers, it’s encouraging to see people take a continuous savings approach which focuses on their long-term retirement goals,” Sharon Brovelli, president of workplace investing at Fidelity, said in a statement. “This approach will help individuals weather any type of market turmoil and stay on track to reach their retirement goals.” 

During the first quarter, which was plagued with market volatility, 17.4% of 401(k) holders upped the size of their contributions, while only 4.9% lowered theirs, the report found. 

Meanwhile, contribution rates among 14.6% of 403(b) holders went up in the first quarter. 

Only a small percentage of people with those types of retirement plans altered their asset allocation during the first quarter, with just 6% of 401(k) users doing so and 4.7% for 403(b), it found. 

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Fidelity’s analysis also showed that people with IRAs upped the amount of money that they put in those retirement accounts in the first quarter by 4.5% compared to 2024’s first quarter. 

A separate survey released Monday by Gallup found 59% of U.S. adults have funds put away in a retirement savings account.

Among those with retirement savings plans that have not yet left the workforce, half reported they “expect to have enough to live comfortably in retirement,” according to Gallup. 

Using “buy now, pay later” (BNPL) has become increasingly common in recent years as people look to split up and finance purchases they make. 

According to Credit Sesame financial analyst Richard Barrington, some key steps people should take as they utilize BNPL include budgeting beforehand, reviewing the terms of the plan, determining what fees could be associated and being prepared for automatic payments.

“If you need BNPL to be able to pay for something, you have to question how you’re going to come up with the money to make the BNPL payments when they come due,” he said, noting budgeting ahead of time can help someone figure out if they can foot the bill for what they’re buying and any debt they could build up because of it.

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He recommended reviewing what income will come in “over the term of the BNPL payments” and then subtracting “all the essential expenses you’ll have during that time” to help “see if you’ll have enough left over to cover BNPL payments.”

“If not, you risk missing one of those BNPL payments and incurring late fees,” he said. 

Budgeting beforehand can “also help you avoid not being able to afford one of those essential expenses because you committed too much money” to BNPL, according to Barrington. 

The Credit Sesame financial analyst urged people taking out BNPL loans to take a close look at the terms of the plan they’re signing up for. 

“Know how much you have to pay and when,” Barrington said. “Also pay attention to what happens if you don’t make a payment on time.” 

Knowing the timing and size of the BNPL payments can help avoid incurring a late fee, he said.

BNPL late fees averaged $7 for a loan taken out on a $135 purchase, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. 

Barrington advised “avoid signing a BNPL agreement you can’t take home and read first.”

“Many BNPL arrangements are made at the point of sale, like in a store. That means you’re trying to understand the terms while you’re in a hurry and with lots of distractions around,” he said. “Instead, take the agreement home with you to read, and then come back to the store to make the purchase. If it doesn’t seem worth that effort, perhaps you don’t really need to buy the item.” 

BNPL can have “strict payment terms” that can lead to late fees, so it’s important to know what the costs associated with the plans could look like, according to Barrington. 

“These fees may look like they’re fairly low dollar amounts, but since BNPL purchases are generally for relatively low-priced items, they can represent a large percentage of the purchase price,” he explained.

Some ways people can steer clear of late fees from BNPL include budgeting and knowing the terms of the installment plan they’re using.

On top of that, he said, creating calendar reminders or using automatic payment options can be helpful. 

When it came to automatic BNPL payments, Barrington noted people should “pay close attention to the amount and schedule” because “otherwise you may find yourself hit with an overdraft fee if your bank account doesn’t have sufficient funds to cover the payments.” 

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Some BNPL services make enrollment in automatic payments mandatory, he said. 

However, people should not take out more than one out at a time, according to Barrington.

“People often turn to BNPL loans when they’re having trouble making ends meet,” he said. “That’s not going to get any easier if they take on multiple BNPL obligations that they’re going to have to come up with the money for in the months to come.”

He said to “avoid using BNPL for anything whose useful life lasts less time than it will take you to finish paying off the BNPL loan.” 

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Another tip that Barrington had was to look into secured credit cards or “becoming an authorized user on someone else’s card” instead of BNPL.

“Secured credit cards or having someone sign you on as an authorized user of their card can be a way in for people who don’t have good enough credit to qualify for a card on their own,” he said.

Credit requirements can differ from card to card. Americans had FICO scores of 715 on average last year, according to Experian.

President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” cleared the House and is making its way through the Senate. 

Still, critics point out the bill, which is over 1,000 pages, will add trillions to what is already ballooning government debt hovering at $36 trillion and deficits. However, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent believes this can be managed. 

“We think that we can both grow the economy and control the debt. What’s important, Bill, is that we grow the economy faster than the debt. What I would tell your viewers to focus on, what I am focused on, what Secretary Yellen was focused on is what is the total debt to GDP because we can grow our way out of this,” Bessent said during an appearance Friday on Fox’s “America’s Newsroom” with Bill Hemmer. 

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Still, the bill contains several provisions that will benefit American workers and everyday households. FOX Business explains how your money may be affected. 

Hardworking Americans won’t have to pay taxes on the tips they make. While this is good for service employees, it may mean lost revenue for the government…continue reading here

Typically, you start a 401(k) when you begin working, getting matched contributions from your employer. The bill may expand similar investment vehicles to newborns and other child tax credits…continue reading here.

High-tax blue states, such as New York, likely secured a win with a big bump for SALT, a deduction for state and local taxes, previously capped at $10,000…continue reading here

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If you own or buy a car made in the U.S. using an auto loan, the interest is on track to be eligible for a deduction…continue reading here.

Trump made it clear the Medicaid program, which provides basically free health insurance to Americans who meet income requirements, won’t be gutted. Not everyone is convinced…continue reading here

Changes to food stamps and nutrition assistance, formerly known as SNAP, or the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, are part of the tax bill. Here’s what may change…continue reading here

Americans have trillions of dollars of wealth locked up in their homes, and passing it on at death can get messy quickly.

The typical way of outlining who should get the house in a will can cause delays after death—so much so that most states have set up a new way for homeowners to document their wishes. It is called a transfer on death deed, and it has taken off in the past 15 years. New York and New Hampshire added the option last year.

These are blunt instruments, however, and they don’t account for all the complications of life. People make mistakes filling out the forms. Heirs get cut out inadvertently. The overall estate plan can conflict with the deed.

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And then it can go really wrong.

A Minnesota man named his niece as the beneficiary on one of these forms, but his ex-wife torched the home a few days after he died. That left his niece with just the land, and she lost a fight to get the insurance proceeds for the house. Courts ruled that he was the one insured but the form made the niece the sole owner, and the insurance didn’t cover her.

More people are having to decide whether to sell a home that has soared in value and pay a big capital-gains tax bill, or hold on to it to give to their children tax-free after they die.

Baby boomer homeowners hold $17 trillion in home equity. Three-quarters of them are planning to leave their current home or the proceeds from its sale to their children or other relatives, according to Freddie Mac.

“There are so many pitfalls that you can step in,” said Frank Pugh, a lawyer in Leesburg, Va.

Traditionally, people with wealth write a will to outline what they want to happen with their property when they die. After death, a court then supervises the transfer of assets, a process known as probate that can be time-consuming and expensive.

To avoid probate, some people will set up a trust, and put their home and other assets in it, with detailed instructions for the trustee. But trusts, whereby the trustee distributes assets at death without court involvement, require attention to make sure assets are titled properly.

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Transfer on death deeds were created as a no-fuss option to avoid probate. It is akin to listing a beneficiary on a 401(k) or on a payable-on-death form for a brokerage account. When the homeowner dies, the beneficiary named on the deed gets the house right away.

“It’s the difference between off-the-rack and custom tailoring,” said Thomas Gallanis, a professor at George Mason University’s law school who was the principal drafter for a model law on TOD deeds in 2009.

Rules vary by state, but in most cases the deed needs to be notarized and recorded at the local courthouse where the property is located.

Homeowners can revoke a transfer on death deed at any time—which is unlike adding someone to a deed as a joint owner.

Lawyers use these deeds often, typically in conjunction with a trust, said Jen Gumbel, an estate planner in Rochester, Minn. She has seen deeds being invalidated because do-it-yourself owners fill them out themselves, failing either to describe the property accurately or to get a spouse to sign off. “These are really technical documents,” she said.

States are still making tweaks to the deed laws. Minnesota updated its law last year in response to the case in which the owner’s ex-wife torched the house. Beneficiaries are now covered by insurance for up to 30 days, as long as the owner gave a copy of the deed and beneficiary information to the insurer before dying.

Things can get more complicated when there is outstanding debt on the property. Skyler Woodard, a 32-year-old welder, has been in a fight for the roughly 200-acre family farm in Nodine, Minn., since 2018, when his father died of cancer.

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His parents bought the farm on a rent-to-own contract from his maternal grandparents in 1994. His father got it in a divorce settlement in 1999, and continued making the payments to the grandparents. His father named Woodard as beneficiary of the farm on a transfer on death deed, but the grandparents asserted it violated an anti-transfer provision in the contract and canceled the contract. The Minnesota Court of Appeals agreed with the grandparents, allowing them to take back the farm. The state Supreme Court declined to review the case.

“He was trying to give me the farm,” Woodard said. He is pursuing an unjust enrichment case against his grandmother now, because his father had made payments on the farm for 23 years. The lawyer for the grandmother had no comment.

A transfer on death deed might successfully pass along the house but still complicate how expenses, debts and taxes are paid, said Stacy Singer, national practice leader for trust and wealth advisory services at Northern Trust. Those are all things that can be spelled out in a will or trust but not in a deed.

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In one case that Singer handled, an 80-year-old man left his girlfriend his $700,000 house via a transfer on death deed. She got a surprise $25,000 tax bill to pay her share of the Illinois estate tax.

She probably could have avoided that tax bill if her boyfriend had just left her the house as a specific bequest in his will.

The Federal Reserve is keeping rates steady at its targeted range of 4% to 4.25% and is waiting to see how President Donald Trump’s administration’s tariffs will impact the economy.

For now, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said that the central bank is in the right place to monitor the impact tariffs will have on the economy before making a decision on further interest rate cuts. For now, the mandate remains the same: get inflation to a 2% target rate. The decision comes even with a negative first-quarter GDP reading. US GDP decreased at an annual rate of 0.3%. This was the first quarter of negative GDP growth since the first quarter of 2022.

“While gross domestic product recorded a mild decline in the first quarter, prompting concerns about a recession, broader economic data underscore ongoing resilience,” the National Apartment Association’s new Vice President of Research, George Ratiu, said in a statement. “The main risk to economic activity is continuing financial pressure on households coming from higher monthly bills, combined with the looming threat of rising layoffs.”

The Fed had anticipated two interest rate cuts for this year, but the impact of how President Trump’s tariffs will play out has derailed this plan. Powell said that the Fed is in a good place to think out policy rates to respond promptly and to potential developments, including rate cuts or holding them steady. 

“Despite heightened uncertainty, the economy is still in a solid position,” Powell said at a press conference on Wednesday. “The unemployment rate remains low, and the labor market is at or near maximum employment. Inflation has come down a great deal but has been running somewhat above our 2% longer-run objective.”

If you are struggling with high inflation, consider taking out a personal loan to pay down debt at a lower interest rate, reducing your monthly payments. Visit Credible to find your personalized interest rate without affecting your credit score.

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With no rate cut in sight, housing affordability will remain a central challenge for most Americans, whether they are looking to buy or rent, according to Raitu. 

Mortgage rates are likely to remain in the high 6% range they’ve held for the last six months without action from the Fed. Home prices are roughly 50% higher than they were in 2019. That means that with current mortgage rates, buyers are facing a $2,200 monthly payment on a median-priced home.  

​”The best-case scenario for mortgage rates is to hover just above the 6% mark for the next two years,” said Victor Kuznetsov, Imperial Fund Asset Management co-founder and managing director. “The average American household has adopted a wait-and-see strategy regarding mortgage rates, as they also seek to reduce their monthly consumer spending amid current economic uncertainty. 

“The good news is that employment and home prices remain strong, so families will be in a better position to buy or refinance a home in the coming months, especially if rates dip below 6%,” Kuznetsov continued.

Mortgage rates are expected to remain flat through the summer housing market. The Mortgage Bankers Association forecasts that the Fed will resume cutting short-term rates in the year’s second half. “Heading into the Fall, if inflation cools as expected, mortgage rates will begin to dip slowly and steadily, finishing out 2025 around 6%,” Voxtur CEO Ryan Marshall said.

If you want to become a homeowner, you can find the best mortgage rates by shopping around. Visit Credible to compare your options without affecting your credit score.

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Some buyers aren’t waiting for interest rates to drop, and lending has picked up recently as consumers readjust their outlook and expectations, according to Michele Raneri, TransUnion vice president and head of U.S. research and consulting.

“While the possibility still exists for potential rate cuts later this year, the economic picture is complicated, and it’s too early to know if or when those cuts might happen,” Raneri said. “We’re starting to see some positive signs in lending – mortgages, home equity loans and auto financing are showing signs of life after a slow couple of years.

“However, these gains will likely remain incremental until rates begin ticking down, as many borrowers are reluctant to take on a loan at today’s rates, particularly if they currently have a loan at a significantly lower rate,” Raneri continued.

If you’re worried about the state of the economy, you could consider paying down high-interest debt with a personal loan at a lower interest rate. Visit Credible to speak with a personal loan expert and get your questions answered.

SENIORS TO GET MODERATE COST OF LIVING BUMP IN SOCIAL SECURITY PAYMENTS NEXT YEAR

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