Oct 19, 2018
Stash’s Midterm Survey: The Results Are In
Stashers rethink their financial prospects before the midterms
If you’ve been feeling better about your financial situation over the last couple of years, you’re probably not alone.
We’re nearly a decade into an economic recovery since the financial crisis, and people are beginning to feel it. Unemployment is at a 50-year low, wages are rising, and apart from some recent stock market stumbles, the economy seems strong.
So we figured it was a good time to check in with Stashers to find out how they’re doing. In mid-September 2018 we polled 6,759 users across the U.S., using Survey Monkey, to ask them exactly how they felt about their financial prospects, prior to the midterm elections, and beyond. (Note: The survey sample was 62% men and 38% women.)
Here’s what we found out:
About 40% of Stash users said their financial picture had brightened since President Trump won the election in 2016. Forty-four percent said their financial picture stayed the same.
About 20% of those polled said their financial prospects have gotten worse since 2016. For these respondents, one-third said times have been tough because their wages showed little or no increases; 16% said it was because the cost of housing had increased, and 17% cited the rising cost of health care.
Looking ahead to the midterm elections, more than two-thirds of those polled said they felt either the same or more fearful about their financial prospects than they did the previous year. One-third said they were more hopeful.
The gender factor
And the results are different by gender. One-quarter of the women surveyed said their financial picture had improved since Trump became president, compared to 44% of men.
Broken down by age, nearly twice as many millennial men said their finances had improved, compared to women the same age.
Similarly, when respondents considered more recent financial opportunities before the midterms, nearly half of women felt more fearful about their financial prospects compared to 30% of men.
How people plan to invest
When it comes to investing, about 85% of respondents said they plan to invest the same or more money in U.S.-based investments.
Similarly, by age, double the number of 18 to 24-year-old men said they are interested in American-focused investments, compared to women who are the same age.
About a quarter of those polled said they feel less trusting of large U.S. tech companies including Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix, and Google.
Meanwhile, 30% said they were less inclined to invest in European stocks, and 25% said they were less inclined to invest in the stocks of companies in Asia.
And by gender, 40% of men said they plan to invest more in U.S.-based companies in the coming year, compared to 25% of women.
When it comes to tech, 22% of men said they were more trusting of tech company investments than they did before Trump took office, compared to 14% of women.
Methodology:
Surveyed 6,759 Americans via SurveyMonkey:
Age Demographics
Under 18 – 0.03%
18-24 – 10.31%
25-34 – 31.69%
35-44 – 25.88%
45-54 – 17.84%
55-64 – 10.99%
65+ – 3.25%
Gender Demographics
Male – 62.09%
Female – 37.56%
Other – 0.34%
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Written by
Team Stash
Disclosure:
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The survey was conducted online within the United States by Stash using Survey Monkey technology in Sept 2018. 6,759 Stash clients completed the survey.
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Investment advisory services offered by Stash Investments LLC, an SEC registered investment adviser. This information is for informational and educational purpose only, represents an assessment of the market environment as of the date of publication, and is subject to change without notice. The information should not be relied upon by the reader as research or investment advice regarding any issuer or security in particular. None of this material should be construed as an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any particular security. Any reference to a specific company or security is for illustrative purposes, is available on Stash as of the date of publication, and is not necessarily representative of all investments available on Stash. Images of holdings and performance are hypothetical and provided for information purposes only. This information is not intended as a recommendation to buy, sell, hold or directly invest in any particular company, security, asset class or or as a promise of future performance. All product and company names referenced are trademarks™ or registered® trademarks of their respective holders. Use of them does not imply any affiliation with or endorsement by them.
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