74% of Americans say celebrating life's big moments interferes with their financial well-being, Achieve survey finds

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Jul 17, 2024, 07:00 ET

Viral loud budgeting trend is reshaping how Americans participate in milestone events for friends and family, Achieve survey finds

SAN MATEO, Calif., July 17, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Nearly three in four Americans (74%) find that the cost of celebrating major life milestones with their family and close friends affects their financial well-being. Yet most are loath to share their feelings and concerns with loved ones, according to the results of a new survey by Achieve, the leader in digital personal finance.

Achieve's think tank, the Achieve Center for Consumer Insights, conducted the "Cost of Being There" survey to examine how consumers manage the expense of participating in major life milestone events like weddings, bachelorette/bachelor parties, milestone birthdays, baby showers and graduations. The research found that while most Americans believe participating in these events takes a toll on their financial well-being, less than half (48%) said they are comfortable citing financial reasons for declining to participate in these events.

How 'being there' affects financial well-being
Extremely impactful	10 %
Very impactful	20 %
Somewhat impactful	44 %
Not very impactful	17 %
Not impactful at all	9 %
How much does spending money to attend major life milestone events for friends and family affect your financial well-being? n=1,000 Source: Achieve Center for Consumer Insights

When asked how much pressure they feel to spend money attending milestone events for family and friends:

15% feel "extremely" or "very" pressured
36% feel somewhat pressured
49% said they experience little to no pressure to spend

Compared to older generations, younger Americans, including members of the Gen Z and Millennial generations, were both more likely to say they're affected financially by participating in milestone events and more willing to share that reason with loved ones. As a result, 67% of Gen Z respondents said they've opted out of participating in a milestone event over the past three years because of the cost, compared to 47% of Millennials, 48% of Gen X and 30% of Baby Boomers.

The impact of loud budgeting

"You only have to look at the loud budgeting trend to see that younger Americans are generally more comfortable talking about their financial challenges than older generations," said Sean Fox, President of Debt Resolution at Achieve. "Millennials came of age during the Great Recession, while their Gen Z peers watched their parents and families struggle through both the 2008 financial crisis and COVID-19 pandemic. So for many, these topics are less taboo because they've had a near-constant presence in their lives. Despite the benefits of creating and discussing budgets, the cost of attending oftentimes pricey events can have a lasting impact on finances."

"Loud budgeting," a money management technique recently popularized on social media, encourages individuals to be vocal about prioritizing their budgets and commitment to their financial boundaries or goals.

In examining the loud budgeting trend, Achieve found:

Overall, 44% of respondents have tried or currently practice loud budgeting
The trend is more popular among Millennials (48%) than Gen Z and Gen X (45% each) and Baby Boomers (37%).
48% of women have loud budgeting experience, compared to 39% of men.
Loud budgeting experience was nearly identical among respondents with household incomes of up to $50,000 (43%) and over $50,000 (44%).

Among respondents who currently practice or have tried loud budgeting, 67% of respondents said the people around them are generally supportive of their financial goals and 59% said others are willing to do less-expensive activities in order to spend time together. However, 29% of loud budgeters said they've been criticized or ridiculed for the practice and 10% don't believe people in their lives respect the boundaries they set about spending. In addition, far fewer respondents said that loud budgeting has led to improvements in their physical health (35%) or love lives (24%).

Is loud budgeting effective?
	Agree	Neutral	Disagree
Dating and romantic relationships have improved	24 %	54 %	22 %
I've been criticized or ridiculed about my loud budgeting habits	29 %	26 %	45 %
Loud budgeting has led to disagreements with friends and family or loss of friendships	31 %	24 %	45 %
I get invited to fewer activities with friends and family	34 %	35 %	31 %
My physical health has improved	35 %	43 %	22 %
I spend more time with friends and family	43 %	35 %	22 %
My mental health has improved	46 %	39 %	15 %
Loud budgeting has helped me reprioritize certain friendships and personal relationships	51 %	36 %	13 %
I do a better job saving money	55 %	31 %	14 %
People in my life are willing to do less expensive activities in order to spend time together	59 %	31 %	10 %
People in my life respect the boundaries I set about spending	63 %	27 %	10 %
Even with loud budgeting, sticking to financial goals is challenging	64 %	23 %	13 %
Loud budgeting makes it easier to stick to financial goals and make ends meet	64 %	27 %	9 %
People in my life are supportive of my financial goals	67 %	25 %	8 %
How much do you agree or disagree with the following statements about loud budgeting? n=437 Source: Achieve Center for Consumer Insights

How much is enough to spend on milestone moments?

So just how much are Americans willing to spend to attend milestone events, and are they ok taking on debt to pay for it? Achieve found that willingness to spend money or incur debt to take part in milestone events frequently comes down to relationships. Nearly half of Americans were more likely to spend over $500 on milestone events for their spouse/significant other, their dependent children and their adult children, including approximately 30% of survey respondents who said they're willing to spend over $1,000 on the milestones of their immediate family members.

How much will we spend?
Total	$0	Up to $500	$501 to $1,000	$1,001 to $5,000	Over $5,000
Work colleagues	32 %	59 %	6 %	1 %	2 %
Other adult friends outside of your work and family	22 %	66 %	9 %	1 %	2 %
Members of your extended family	17 %	66 %	11 %	3 %	2 %
Your spouse or significant other's close friends	25 %	57 %	11 %	4 %	3 %
Your best friend	13 %	65 %	14 %	5 %	3 %
Your spouse or significant other's family members	16 %	58 %	15 %	8 %	3 %
Your siblings	13 %	59 %	16 %	8 %	5 %
Your parents	14 %	46 %	16 %	14 %	11 %
Your adult children	16 %	40 %	17 %	14 %	13 %
Your dependent children	15 %	39 %	17 %	14 %	15 %
Your spouse or significant other	10 %	40 %	19 %	13 %	17 %
How much money would you be willing to spend to participate in a major life milestone for the following people in your life? n=1,000 Source: Achieve Center for Consumer Insights

Achieve found that 79% of Americans typically need more than a month to save money or make other financial arrangements to attend milestone events, including 18% who said it typically takes over six months to prepare financially.

"Saving money ahead of time, rather than using credit cards and paying them off later, is a helpful strategy to mitigate the financial strain of attending milestone events because it can reduce or eliminate additional interest charges that can make an expensive event even more costly," said Fox.

In addition to being willing to spend the largest amounts of money on the milestone events of their significant others and both young and adult children, respondents also said they were more willing to take on debt to cover these expenses. Conversely, respondents said they're less interested in spending money on events for coworkers and the friends of their spouse or significant other.

Taking on debt to attend milestone events
	0 %	1% to 25%	26% to 50%	51% to 75%	76% to 100%
Work colleagues	52 %	33 %	8 %	4 %	2 %
Other adult friends outside of your work and family	51 %	33 %	9 %	5 %	2 %
Members of your extended family	41 %	36 %	15 %	5 %	3 %
Your best friend	36 %	39 %	15 %	7 %	4 %
Your spouse or significant other's family members	36 %	35 %	19 %	5 %	5 %
Your spouse or significant other's close friends	44 %	30 %	15 %	6 %	5 %
Your siblings	31 %	37 %	19 %	8 %	5 %
Your parents	26 %	30 %	20 %	11 %	13 %
Your adult children	26 %	24 %	22 %	14 %	14 %
Your spouse or significant other	23 %	27 %	22 %	13 %	15 %
Your dependent children	21 %	23 %	24 %	14 %	18 %
How much of the amount that you would spend on milestone events would you be willing to take on as debt that takes more than one month to pay off? n=1,000 Source: Achieve Center for Consumer Insights

Methodology

The data and findings presented are based on an Achieve survey conducted in April 2024 consisting of 1,000 U.S. consumers ages 18 and older, and is representative of Census Bureau benchmarks of the U.S. population for age, gender, race and ethnicity.

About the Achieve Center for Consumer Insights

The Achieve Center for Consumer Insights is a think tank that leverages Achieve's team of digital personal finance experts to provide a view into the state of consumer finances. In addition to sharing insights gleaned from Achieve's proprietary data and analytics, the Achieve Center for Consumer Insights publishes in-depth research, bespoke data and thoughtful commentary in support of Achieve's mission of helping everyday people get on the path to a better financial future.

About Achieve

Achieve, THE digital personal finance company, helps everyday people get on, and stay on, the path to a better financial future. Achieve pairs proprietary data and analytics with personalized support to offer personal loans, home equity loans, debt resolution and debt consolidation, along with financial tips and education and free mobile apps, Achieve MoLO (Money Left Over) and Achieve GOOD™ (Get Out Of Debt). Achieve has 2,500 dedicated teammates across the country with hubs in Arizona, California, Florida and Texas. Achieve is frequently recognized as a Best Place to Work.

Achieve refers to the global organization and may denote one or more affiliates of Achieve Company, including Achieve.com (NMLS ID #138464); Achieve Home Loans, Equal Housing Lender (NMLS ID #1810501); Achieve Personal Loans (NMLS ID #227977); Achieve Resolution (NMLS ID # 1248929) and Freedom Financial Asset Management (CRD #170229).

Contacts

Erica Bigley
Vice President
Corporate Communications
[email protected] 415-710-9006

Austin Kilgore
Director
Corporate Communications
[email protected] 214-908-5097

SOURCE Achieve