Join Our Petition to Establish November 5^th as U.S. National Savings Day^®

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Your Name		November 5th Personal Finance Independence Day!
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What is National Savings Day^®?

National Savings Day is a day honoring saving, financial planning, debt reduction, and wealth accumulation. The main purpose is to encourage consumers to be aware of their saving and spending habits. Employers can also take an active participation by promoting personal finance education though training sessions, distribution of informative materials, or online seminars. On National Savings Day we should commit to save and live within our financial means. This could be as simple as making a lunch or coffee at home and depositing a few dollars to our savings jar. This could also be an excellent opportunity for to review our portfolio with our financial advisors, to create a family budget, to review and reduce some of our expenses, or to make a deposit to our (emergency) savings accounts.

Why do we need a National Savings Day in U.S.?

We are a consumer driven society where no one is encouraged to save. Our savings and retirement plans are under funded. The future of social security is in question. College education and retirement homes are becoming unaffordable. Nobody can predict the future (or the future cost) of our healthcare. With the current status of our economy, this is precisely the right time for our families to become reacquainted with the fundamental concepts of saving and budgeting.

Times are bleak for the U.S. consumers

• 40% of American families spend more than they earn¹
• Average U.S. household credit card debt is $8,299¹
• 53% of workers have not calculated how much they will need for retirement²
• 8.5 million U.S. homeowners will default on their mortgages between 2008 and 2010. Roughly 5.2 million of them will lose their homes³
• In 1984, as a nation, we saved 10.4% of our disposable income. In 2005, for the first time since the Great Depression, our national savings rate was negative (-0.5%)⁴

According to a study released by Bankrate, Inc. in February 2008:

• 66% of Americans say debt is often the result of unfortunate circumstances beyond a person's control, while 60% say it is usually the result of bad decisions
• Americans have conflicting attitudes about debt. While 91% believe debt can be controlled by disciplined saving and spending, 72% also believe that debt is a part of modern life and difficult to avoid