Bingo!!! Sadly, many of my customers at my store have been laid off and are in their 40s. And not one of them has savings. I was stunned.
It is amazing the mentality people in this country have that everything will be rosy and they don't need a back up plan.
Any historian or economist can tell you the economy is cyclical. Recessions / Depressions occur usually on a 20 year basis.
But I don't understand why so many think they don't need to have savings! I've been struck by deaths in the family and many other unforeseen events requiring money. I just don't understand how people don't save money, life isn't going to be a perfect journey that is predictable. There will always be bumps in the road and you never know when they will occur.
With the monetary policy we’ve had during the past decade, people are literally punished for saving. Interest rates are next to nothing, and money sitting in an account at the bank is literally eaten away by inflation and higher costs of living. There would be much more saving if people were rewarded for forming capital.
Couple the above with lower to stagnant wages, and you have some real problems....