Americans not overly optimistic about finances

04.28.09
By Timothy Jones

Although some people may be cautiously preparing themselves to hope for a turnaround for the American economy, many are still pessimistic about their personal financial situation.

According to a Harris Interactive poll, 31 percent of respondents said they believe their household's finances will be in a worse state six months from now. Meanwhile, only 23 percent say they expect to be better off than they are now and 46 percent expect things to stay the same.

The findings come as new figures show more families are falling behind on paying their credit card bills.

Fitch's Charge-Off Index monitors the levels of credit card debt that is considered uncollectable by lenders. This index rose to a record-high of 8.4 percent Reuters reports.

That means the charge-off rate has climbed by 28 percent over the past six months and by nearly 47 percent compared with the same period last year.

"As consumers struggle between surging unemployment and steeper declines in home and equity market values, they have been cutting spending and a larger percentage have fallen behind on their credit card bills," said Fitch.

Although some people's credit scores may be taking a hit due to ripples from the economy, the Harris poll shows more than half of respondents are confident the government's policies will dig the country out of its recession.

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Many Americans believe their financial situation is getting worse