Santander US Middle-Income Survey Finds Majority of Americans Remained Optimistic in 2023, See Headwinds Ahead in 2024 - Seite 2

Vehicle Access

More than eight in 10 believe vehicle access is important for supporting the U.S. economy so workers can get to/from work. Job-related income remains the #1 source to support financial prosperity for middle-income Americans, and three in four of Americans rely on a vehicle to get to work. Only 45% of middle-income workers have daily access to public transportation. Overwhelmingly middle-income Americans are working in-person at least some of the time (84%), increasing demand for vehicles. This includes 73% who are working in-person three or more days a week. The survey also found 50% of middle-income Americans delayed purchasing a vehicle in 2023 due to cost, while 42% are considering purchasing a new or used vehicle in 2024.

2024 Financial Challenges

Inflation remained the top obstacle to financial prosperity (51%), though down from its peak of 57% in the second quarter. Inflation also was cited as the top reason why middle-income Americans believe a recession is looming in 2024. The survey also found 56% of these households will be impacted financially by higher health care premiums in 2024. Additionally, of those with responsibility for student-loan debt (36%), 67% say the resumption of federal student-loan payments in 2023 is having an impact on their ability to achieve financial prosperity.

This research on financial prosperity, conducted by Morning Consult on behalf of Santander US, surveyed 2,204 Americans who are bank and/or financial services customers, ages 18-70. Survey participants are employed or looking for work and own/use at least one financial product and are the primary or shared-decision maker on household finances with household income in the “middle-income” range of ~$47,000 to $142,000. This fourth quarter study was conducted in December 2023. The interviews were conducted online, and the margin of error is +/- 2 percentage points for the total audience at a 95% confidence level. The data was weighted to target population proportions for a representative sample based on age, gender, ethnicity, region, and education.

The full report and more information about the Santander US survey is available here.

About Santander US

Santander Holdings USA, Inc. (SHUSA) is a wholly owned subsidiary of Madrid-based Banco Santander, S.A. (NYSE: SAN) (Santander), a global banking group with 166 million customers in the U.S., Europe and Latin America. As the intermediate holding company for Santander’s U.S. businesses, SHUSA is the parent company of financial companies with approximately 13,700 employees, 4.5 million customers, and $168 billion in assets, as of December 2022. These include Santander Bank, N.A., Santander Consumer USA Holdings Inc., Banco Santander International, Santander Securities LLC, Santander US Capital Markets LLC and several other subsidiaries. Santander US is recognized as a top 10 auto lender, a top 10 multifamily bank lender, and has a growing wealth management business. For more information about Santander US, please visit www.santanderus.com.