A new Bankrate.com report reveals 26 percent of Americans have no emergency savings and the number of those with three months' expenses in savings dipped from 45 percent in 2013 to 40 percent this year.
The report also notes that 67 percent of Americans have saved less than the recommended six months' worth of expenses and half have saved less than three months' expenses.
"Americans continue to show a stunning lack of progress in accumulating sufficient emergency savings," said Greg McBride, CFA, Bankrate.com's chief financial analyst, in a press release.
"Even among the highest-income households -- those with annual income of $75,000 or above -- fewer than half (46 percent) currently have a six-month savings cushion."
Americans between the ages of 30 to 49 years old are most likely to have no emergency funds to tap, but younger Americans, those between 18 and 30, are most likely to have up to five months of savings.
"Many of those under age 30 have the benefit of lower expenses due to roommates, living with their parents or being students. Ages 30 through 49 are high-spending years when expenses often rise faster than emergency savings can keep up," explained McBride.
Here are some additional highlights from the report:
- People identifying as black were nearly twice as likely (40 percent) to say they have no emergency savings as those identifying as white (21 percent).
- Retirees were more than twice as likely (36 percent) to have saved at least six months' of expenses as 18- to 29-year-olds (16 percent).
- 36 percent of people with a high school education or less said they had no emergency savings, compared with 10 percent of college grads.
"What did change since the recession was the recognition of the importance of emergency savings," said McBride. "Americans know that having emergency savings is important, they know they don't have enough, and they feel very uncomfortable about that. But despite that, they're just not making any progress."
The Bankrate.com report also notes Americans are feeling more secure about employment these days than a year ago. About 24 percent of Americans feel more secure than a year ago when just 17 percent felt secure about employment.
The survey was conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates International and involved phone interviews with 1,004 adults.
