Savings down, spending up on account of coronavirus: Report

Many americans are dipping into their savings as unemployment rises and the economic fallout from the coronavirus gets worse, according to research from LendEDU.

Fifty-one percent of respondents tapped into a savings or emergency funds, said LendEDU, which commissioned the survey of 1,000 American adults conducted on April 1. That’s up from the 44% that had used savings in LendEDU’s first survey gauging the financial impact of the pandemic completed on March 18.

At the same time, Americans are spending more on supplies and food. Those costs increased 88%, to about $631, between the two surveys.

Twelve percent of participants had lost their jobs, up from 6% recorded in the first survey. Twenty-four percent had no changes to their jobs, down from the 35% posted in the first survey. Almost 10 million Americans have recently filed for unemployment benefits.

Almost three-quarters said they were worried about their retirement, an increase from 63% in the initial survey.

Congress has approved legislation to send one-time checks of $1,200 to individuals, though not everyone is eligible for the payments. Thirty percent of eligible participants said they would save the $1,200. A fifth said they would use it to pay for their mortgage or rent, and 30% said they would use the funds to buy food and other supplies.