As many Americans find themselves evaluating their financial picture as a result of COVID-19, the road to recovery may seem daunting – or even impossible. However, the way investors have dealt with financial challenges in the past may shed light on how investors may be able to handle the financial repercussions of COVID-19. A new study by Ameriprise Financial found that nearly three-quarters of people have experienced at least one major financial setback – often costing more than $50,000, and in some cases more than $100,000. But those investors have also staged a comeback and managed to put their finances back in order.
What obstacles did they face and how did they overcome them? Those were key questions Ameriprise set out to explore in its newly released Financial Comebacks study. The study, which surveyed more than 3,000 U.S. investors ages 30-70 with at least $100,000 in investable assets in January 2020, identified unexpected life events that took a major financial toll on investors’ finances – and uncovered how 89% of respondents who experienced a setback bounced back or are on the path to recovery.
Survey participants said the number one financial setback they experienced historically was market losses (26%). Other financial hurdles they most often cited included earning less money than expected (23%), job loss (20%), supporting family members financially (17%), bad financial decisions (16%), divorce (12%) and illness (12%). More than half (52%) of respondents said their setback cost them $50,000 or more – of these investors a third (34%) said it cost $100,000 or more.
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“Unfortunately, as we’ve seen in recent months, everyone – regardless of their income or assets – is susceptible to financial setbacks,” said Marcy Keckler, Vice President of Financial Advice Strategy at Ameriprise. “Though it’s hard to predict exactly when and how an event will impact your finances, we can anticipate that there will be ups and downs along the road to financial security. As investors grapple with the impact of the current crisis and look for ways to get their finances back on track, we can learn useful lessons from people who’ve previously experienced financial setbacks, and eventually made a comeback.”
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