The state of America’s wallets
How well are Americans making ends meet? In 2024, nearly a third of adults felt worse off than they had in 2023. The Federal Reserve tracks how Americans feel about their financial situations. We dug through the latest drop to bring you these insights.
- More than a quarter of US adults say they’re struggling financially: 73% reported “living comfortably” or “doing okay,” 19% said they were “just getting by,” and 8% said they were “finding it difficult to get by.”
- Inflation topped the list of financial challenges, followed by the costs of basic living expenses and housing.
- Financial confidence tracks with education: 87% of people with at least a bachelor’s degree said they’re doing at least okay, compared to 68% of people with some college or a technical or associate’s degree, and 47% of people without a high school diploma.
- It’s harder for parents with children at home, too: in 2024, 65% of parents thought they were doing at least okay, compared to 76% of all other adults.
Just the facts on subsidized housing
If you’re like many Americans, your biggest monthly expense is probably housing. And depending on where you live, housing affordability may be a hot topic. But what’s meant by housing affordability? The government has an official measure for just that, and USAFacts Founder Steve Ballmer walks through it in this new video.
- The government considers housing affordable if it costs no more than 30% of a household’s income. For perspective, the median cost of rent in 2024 was about $1,500 per month, roughly 33% of the median renter household income. In other words, even the median renter is paying more on rent than the government deems appropriate.
- In Florida, Nevada, Hawaii, Louisiana, and California, more than 54% of renters paid 30% or more of their monthly income on housing.
- Means-tested federal housing assistance helps people below a certain income level afford housing. In other words, you must demonstrate financial need to qualify for subsidies.
- The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) runs this federal rental assistance. However, due to funding constraints, not everyone eligible gets HUD rental assistance. In fact, one in four eligible families nationwide actually receives support. (Eligibility is determined annually and is based on where you live.)
- This is just the tip of the iceberg — check out the video for more. And that’s not all! This video is part of a new series that features a brand-new way to interact with the facts. As you watch, you’ll see links to interactive charts at relevant points in the video. Click the buttons and explore the chart at your leisure. We’ll hold your spot in the video for you.
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How many people are registered for political parties?
About 189.5 million Americans are registered to vote as of August— that’s nearly eight in 10 Americans who are 18 or older. But less than half (45%) of voters have a party affiliation. Tomorrow is Election Day in many parts of the country. And while this year’s contests aren’t as numerous as next year’s midterms, it’s a chance to understand the party affiliationsstate by state.
- As of August, 37.4 million US voters were registered as Republicans. About 44.1 million voters were registered as Democrats. If you noticed that these don’t add up to the total voters we mentioned above, there’s a reason for that: 18 states don’t require voters to declare a party affiliation.
- Wyoming had the highest share of registered Republicans: 77.2% of registered voters. The largest numbers of registered Republicans were in California (5.8 million, or 25.2% of the state’s registered voters) and Florida (5.5 million, or 40.7%).
- Washington, DC, had the highest share of registered Democrats at 75.6%. Maryland has the next highest at 51.7%. The largest numbers of Democrats were in California (10.4 million or 45.3% of the state’s registered voters) and New York (5.9 million, or 47.5%).
- There are 34.3 million voters registered as independents or without party affiliation. Independents account for nearly 28.8% of all registered voters in states that report party affiliation. Massachusetts has the highest percentage of its voters registered as independents (64.8%).
Data behind the news
The White House has signaled that it will partially fund Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), following a court order. The government shutdown had caused funding for the food program to lapse on November 1. This new article lays out the data that states — and congressional districts — with the most SNAP recipients.
Air traffic controllers have been working without pay during the shutdown. And as of September 2023, nearly half of FAA air control facilities were understaffed.
The Sunday crossword is one thing — have you tried the Monday fact quiz?
One last fact
Speaking of air traffic, if you’re planning a trip soon, these airlines had the best on-time arrival rates in the first six months of this year:
- Hawaiian
- Horizon
- Southwest
- United
- Spirit
The Bureau of Transportation Statistics counts a flight as “on time” if it arrives within 15 minutes of its scheduled arrival.