A Sector of Optimism

African Americans are more optimistic about their financial future over the next year than the general population, but the majority of those responding acknowledge they don’t have a financial game plan and many don’t know where to start. A new survey by The Smiley Group and Nationwide Insurance shows 58% of African Americans expect their household situation to be better a year from now, compared to only 30% of the general population sharing similar optimism.

While African Americans say they think their financial situation will improve in the next year, most of those surveyed indicated they are not taking deliberate actions to better their financial circumstances:

• Less than half say they are proactive about their financial future
• 3 in 4 say they do not have a written financial plan
• 1 in 3 say they don’t know where to start when it comes to personal financial planning

African Americans are more confident than their general population peers in their ability to make savings and investment decisions (52% vs. 43%), but are also more likely to indicate they are struggling with credit card debt (38% vs. 32%).

On saving for college, nearly half of all survey participants with children under 21 said they are very or extremely worried about being able to afford a college education for their children, while only about one in 20 of all survey participants say they actually have a college savings plan. Only 3 percent say saving for education is the most important goal.

“It’s one thing to be positive, but it’s another to be practical, proactive and prepared to weather this difficult economic climate,” said Tavis Smiley. Change has come to America.

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