Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the United States are somewhat more optimistic than the adult population when it comes to their personal finances, but recent polls show that the outlook is not as bright when it comes to keeping track of household expenses or unexpected medical costs.
A new poll from AAPI Data and the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research shows that 62% of American Asians and Pacific Islanders say their household’s financial situation is good, slightly higher than the 54% of all American adults who said that in a year. October AP-NORC poll. But only about a quarter of Asian and Pacific Islander adults are extremely or very confident that they could afford sudden medical expenses. That equates to 26% of American adults overall. Meanwhile, 4 in 10 are “not very” or “not at all” confident.
When it comes to the ability to maintain household expenses, only 3 in 10 AAPI adults feel confident they can do so. Another 46% have ‘some confidence’ and 23% have ‘little or no confidence’.
Stan Kilpatrick, a 65-year-old Republican in Altadena, California, runs a limousine service. Its client base, including the University of Southern California, has dwindled as more events and meetings with guest speakers and groups move virtually. Meanwhile, the costs of car insurance and fuel continue to rise.
“A lot of the money I saved for retirement has gone into everyday expenses now that the company has gone bankrupt,” said Kilpatrick, who is half Chinese. He also has a 23-year-old daughter living at home and is “absolutely terrified” at the cost it is now costing. I feel for her because when you’re just starting out, it’s like you’re really stuck in roommate land.”
He has some confidence that he can weather an unforeseen payment, such as a health problem. But that’s only because of the health insurance he has as an army veteran.
“They can spread the costs. So that helps, but at the end of the day I’m not sure the Veterans Administration will be there for me,” Kilpatrick said.
Karthick Ramakrishnan, a professor of public policy at the University of California, Riverside and founder of AAPI Data, said concerns about health care costs and medical debt are clearly a high priority in the Asian American and Pacific Islander community. There are more multi-generational AAPI households compared to the U.S. average, and these households are more likely to include foreign-born grandparents who are not eligible for Medicare.
The weight of the medical costs is also emotional, Ramakrishnan said.
“There’s just a sense of familial obligation that is quite strong in a lot of Asian and Asian American cultures,” he said. “You’re looking at a population that has higher average incomes, but it’s not much more likely than the U.S. average to say they’ll have enough savings for retirement — 22% versus 18%.”
When it comes to the country’s economy as a whole, 65% of AAPI adults characterize the country as at least somewhat poor. That equates to 69% of the general U.S. adult population in a December AP-NORC survey. Additionally, about four in 10 AAPI adults believe the economy will only worsen in the coming year. Only about 2 in 10 think this will actually improve. But they tend to follow party lines when it comes to President Joe Biden’s handling of the economy, inflation, jobs and student debt.
About half identify as Democrats, about a quarter as Republicans and two in 10 as independents.
About four-in-ten AAPI adults expressed approval of Biden’s handling of the economy. But only 34% of American adults approve of his performance on the economy. A majority of AAPI adults — 55% — approve of Biden’s handling of jobs. Only 32% agree with the way he is dealing with cost inflation. When it comes to student debt, 45% agree with him. That compares with the 41% of American adults who agreed in the October poll.
Audrey Jackson-Post, 34, of Kirksville, Missouri, said her household’s financial situation is difficult. Sometimes she worries about paying basic expenses. She and her husband recently failed to purchase a house. Jackson-Post, who is part Korean, only works part-time hours in the kitchen at the school where her husband works full-time in the classroom.
Jackson-Post, a Democrat, is unsure whether she will vote for Biden in the presidential election.
‘Since he came to power, it has become more difficult for everyone to find a job. It just feels like everything is harder,” she said. “My situation isn’t great, but if the housing market wasn’t like this, I could have gotten another house.”
James Bae, 49 and a married business consultant in Temecula, California, said his household income is lower compared to a year ago. The number of companies willing to pay for his services fluctuates depending on the state of the economy. Meanwhile, household expenses have increased. Bae, who is Korean-American and has no affiliation with any political party, recently went back to school for his doctorate. Moreover, he and his wife have two teenage sons.
“They eat a lot, they become more active. Sure, I’m happy that they’re great and they’re getting more involved in activities, but it costs more,” Bae said.
At the same time, he believes that the country’s economy is moving in the right direction. He pointed out that the Biden administration is trying to promote more technology and manufacturing in the US during the pandemic, as well as financial aid. He also acknowledges that inflation is “a difficult needle to thread.”
“If I had to make a trade-off with the state of employment and the way the economy is, I would rather have the problems we have now with inflation than a recession,” Bae said.
He worries that the outcome of this year’s presidential election could seriously disrupt matters.
“Building the infrastructure for a developing future economy takes time,” Bae said. “If the government changes, I suspect a lot of these things will be stopped and curtailed.”
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The poll of 1,091 U.S. adults who are Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders was conducted December 4-11, 2023, using a sample drawn from NORC’s probability-based Amplify AAPI Panel, designed to be representative of the Asian -American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander population. The margin of sampling error is plus or minus 4.5 percentage points for all respondents.