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EPIC targets one consequential consumer finance issue at a time to investigate in depth.

The Issues

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Jacob Hacker | Yale Institution for Social and Policy Studies

What we need doesn’t exist yet – policies that provide broad stop-loss protection against catastrophic costs for medical care, long-term care, temporary disability, and other defined risks.

The Issues

● CURRENT ISSUE

THE ISSUE

Housing affordability and stability are foundational elements of financial security that millions of US households lack, often forcing lower income families to make painful tradeoffs between housing and other basic needs.

● CURRENT ISSUE

THE ISSUE

Our interest in this topic stems from our work on income volatility. During our 18-month cycle with income volatility, we learned that individuals and families use an ad hoc patchwork of strategies to manage dips in income and spikes in expenses, including a heavy reliance on borrowing. Households rely on credit to get by, often because savings are insufficient or have been depleted. For low-income families, the combination of income and expense volatility and limited access to credit can create serious challenges to their ability to make ends meet without becoming mired in expensive debt, creating a new burden that stretches their budgets even thinner.

● PAST ISSUE

THE ISSUE

A growing body of research shows that month-to-month income fluctuates wildly for low-and moderate-income Americans. This unpredictable income significantly impacts the financial lives of these individuals making it hard for them to meet monthly expenses, save, pay down debt, qualify for a loan, or handle a major unexpected expense.

EPIC
HOUSING|CONSUMER DEBT|INCOME VOLATILITY

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