The payout of stimulus checks started on March 12 with the amount of $1,400 for eligible Americans, so how was that money spent? On the last days of the year, it is time to review how and on what Americans spent their stimulus checks throughout the year.
Most of the first found stimulus payments were issued in April when the unemployment rate was really high. The rate was as high as 14.7% and it was hard for people to even meet daily needs.
The numbers
According to the US Census Bureau’s survey, in July 2020, those that had a salary or earned between $75,000 and $99,999 used their stimulus checks to pay off debt or save the money. A total of 7.6% used $25,000 to meet their daily expenses. Most Americans used the stimulus checks to pay for expenses and spent it on daily needs.
A large part of the stimulus checks also helped people pay for groceries and bills. Due to the pandemic, Americans were left with no jobs and layovers led to brutal disasters. As a result, the stimulus came as a boon.
The stimulus savior
Many citizens used the stimulus to pay back their debt. This was the case when they had already gained financial stability and had their job. The target for paying back the debt was mostly on student loans and crest card debts. Stimulus checks help them to pay back the debt fastly.
There were Americans that already used these checks in order to boost their savings fund. This was the case in mostly the second and third rounds of stimulus checks. This helped them to regain their lost savings due to the pandemic.
The fear of poor financial habits
With allotting stimulus checks, there was a fear that people would use it to pocket more money and it would be just easy money to them. Though it depends on person to person and how they perceive their finances. It can lead to impulsive spending and it can also lead to meeting the bare minimum.
Overall looking at the situation, the result is positive as most Americans utilized these stimulus checks to pay back debt, spend on their daily needs and secure more savings. Meanwhile, here is how 2022 can be your best financial year.
