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Millennials Often Choose Health Over Wealth, But That’s Not Always the Best Idea
Every year, Americans tend to focus on health or finances as a priority, but which do they care about more? TD Bank, America's Most Convenient Bank®, decided to find out, and surveyed 1,091 consumers who have set a new goal in 2018.
May. 31, 2018
Every year, Americans tend to focus on health or finances as a priority, but which do they care about more? TD Bank, America’s Most Convenient Bank®, decided to find out, and surveyed 1,091 consumers who have set a new goal in 2018.
According to the survey, diet and fitness goals supersede monetary goals, with the top health goal being to eat better (54 percent) and the top financial goal being to save more and spend less (39 percent). Despite the majority of people being less confident that they will achieve their goals to get in shape, they are more likely to seek outside guidance with their money matters than their nutrition or fitness routines.
Millennials care more about their waistlines than credit lines.
The top monetary goal across all ages is to save more and spend less. However, millennials say eating healthy (56 percent) and getting in shape/staying fit (48 percent) is more important than saving more and spending less (47 percent).
Nearly three quarters (73 percent) of survey respondents admit to making a money mistake in the past year, and it’s even higher among millennials (83 percent). For the younger generation, the biggest mistake was incurring too much credit card debt and not paying it off (17 percent). Still, only 21 percent of millennials view paying off debt as a prime concern. Similar to their older counterparts, millennials say building a nest egg or emergency savings account (42 percent) and investing/saving for retirement (34 percent) takes precedence.
“Today’s younger generations are faced with more challenging levels of debt since schooling costs continue to outpace starting salary growth,” said Jason Thacker, Head of Consumer Deposits, Products, and Payments at TD Bank. “So they may prioritize goals differently than their older counterparts due to the unique demands they experience in the modern economy.”
Want a beach body? Focus on your wallet first.
An overwhelming majority of consumers (87 percent) agree that if their finances are in order, other goals (fitness, health, career, etc.) are easier to accomplish. That being said, only 4-in-10 Americans are extremely or very satisfied with their fiscal health.
The report finds that women (32 percent) are significantly less satisfied with their financial health than men (51 percent). Additionally, 41 percent of those satisfied with their financial health are more likely to be satisfied with their physical health (75 percent), emotional health and wellness (85 percent) and family well-being (87 percent).
However, this link is not as strong the other way around: of those extremely or very satisfied with their physical health, only 69 percent are satisfied with their financial health.