FDIC Report:25% of US Households Lack Access to Banks
30 million American households lack access to bank accounts including more than 1 million who lost access in the last year alone according to a new survey undertaken by the FDIC. Low income households and low earners are the most likely to avoid banks and their higher fees and minimum balance requirements in favor of check cashing services and other more costly alternatives. As unemployment worsens, more families are finding themselves without the money necessitating the maintenance of accounts at banks.
The survey also found:
- 54 percent of black households, 44.5 percent of American Indian/Alaskan households and 43.3 percent of Hispanic households have limited access to banking.
- Households in the South are more likely to be unbanked or underbanked.
- About 28 percent of households headed by unmarried people are underbanked. For households with married couples, the number is 15.4 percent.
