JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – We've been out of the Great Recession for months. The stock market is at an all-time high and unemployment has plummeted in the past decade. But many families find it hard to stretch a dollar these days.
The SunTrust Bank study says one third of households making more than $75, 000 live paycheck to paycheck. The number one reason families are struggling is because of poor spending habits.
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The biggest culprit in that category was people spending too much on eating out.
"If you have two kids and a family, it's hard to live a normal life." said Mila Giter. She is a mother and she remembers the financial struggles of raising a family. "It's hard if you want to give your kids a little bit more than just normal stuff."
Giter says she wasn't surprised about the recent survey. Close to one-in-three households earning more than $75,000 a year, live from paycheck-to-paycheck at least some of the time. More than one-in-four households earning more than $100,000 a year said the same. 43 percent of households with middle class incomes say they're not saving enough.
Carrie Jones with life-planning partners says families need more discipline when it comes to saving.
"Do it automatically- have it come from your paycheck, from your workplace retirement, or have it come direct deposit for when you get paid and run into a savings account. Make it automatic so you don't think about it." suggests Jones.
Giter is also stressing the importance of saving, especially if you have kids.
"We watch what we buy when we need something big. We save some money and we always put it away." said Giter.
Jones says this month is financial literacy month and next week is wise money week in Jacksonville.
If you're interested in learning about events and activities happening on how to be better financially stable, more information is available here: www.wisemoneyweek.org