A report on the economic well-being of U.S. households in 2017 released by the Federal Reserve shows improved financial conditions among individuals of all education levels over the past five years. However, the report also indicates that approximately 40 percent of Americans were ill-equipped to cover an unexpected expense of $400 or more.
About 5 percent of consumers indicated that they would consider taking out a payday loan to cover such an expense, whereas 43 percent said they would put the debt on a credit card and 26 percent said they’d borrow from friends or family.
Find out more about the report’s findings, and how one association representing payday lenders interpreted the data.