Some folks are using their savings from lower gasoline prices to pay down their bills while others are tucking it away in savings, a new investor survey shows.
As USA Today reports, people say the drop in gas and oil prices since last year is saving them an average of $108 a month, with retirees saving an estimated $68 a month and non-retirees $117, according to the Wells Fargo/Gallup survey of 1,011 investors, conducted in late January and early February. The median age of retirees was 69; non-retirees, 47. An investor was defined as an adult in a household with $10,000 or more in savings and investments.
The data show that 7 out of 10 respondents are using the extra money to improve their personal balance sheets. More than a third (37%) say they’re using the extra money to pay down bills, and a third (33%) are adding to their savings. Only a quarter (25%) are using it for additional purchases.
About a quarter (27%) say savings on fuel is helping their household budget “a lot”; 41% say it’s helping “a little”; and for 32%, it hasn’t made much difference. The survey also explored investors’ attitudes.
