A new American Pulse poll displaying a deep well of economic anxiety among Americans. High inflation has made them concerned about the future of our economy. Past economic data revealed in the survey indicate a strong belief among the public — particularly Republicans — that the nation is already in a recession. This is especially notable given the official data that shows America has not been in recession since early 2020.
In May, 67% of Republicans thought the country was already in a recession, supported by 49% of Democrats. This simple, virulent, yet very dangerous belief flies in the face of strong economic data reflecting stability. The National Bureau of Economic Research has confirmed that the last recession lasted from February to April 2020, raising questions about public perception versus reality.
The poll clearly shows that economic conditions are weighing heavily on the ability to achieve life goals. Nearly three in five Americans said economic hardships have impacted one or more of their top life goals. Among those aspiring to buy a home, a staggering 75% indicated that the current economic climate has derailed their plans. This hammers home the story of increasing affordability anxiety in the current housing market, particularly given the jump in mortgage rates. In March, the average 30-year mortgage rate was 6.7%. This rate is over twice as high as it was four years ago.
Concerns about financial stability extend beyond housing. Specifically, the survey found that 78% of Americans are seeing rising prices in grocery stores over the past few months. On top of that, 60% said their monthly bills and costs of daily necessities have increased. Cost of living has skyrocketed, leading 65% of Americans to report that the cost of living has gotten worse since January. Americans are understandably feeling the financial pinch. Alarmingly, 50% of those surveyed said escalating prices have made it impossible to stay within their budget. Many are still struggling to pay their basic cost of living.
Looking into the future, a majority of Americans expect even more difficult times to come. Out of the 95 respondents who answered this question, a shocking 29% expect that the directly-related costs of tariffs will financially harm their households by 2025. This is one area of bipartisan concern. This is a popular one among the cross-partisan masses – a whopping 39% of Democrats, 28% of independents, and 21% of Republicans all agree. Moreover, 23% of respondents think government policies will be economically harmful to their families over the next few years. At the same time, 12% marked companies as the greatest source of financial risk.
The unhappiness with the state of the economy is most acute with independent voters and Democrats. The left-leaning Americans for Prosperity commissioned survey found 64% of independents and a whopping 73% of Democrats rated US economy as getting worse. This shared perspective leads to a deep and abiding sense of angst over one’s long-term economic security.