Study: 40% of Americans making $100K and more live paycheck-to-paycheck

More than half of Americans live paycheck-to-paycheck, according to a new survey from LendingClub Corp., with a large number of high-income earners reporting they are barely getting by financially.

In a survey of 28,635 consumers, 54% of respondents said they were living paycheck-to-paycheck, with 21% admitting they have little or no money left over after spending their income.

Nearly 40% of respondents with annual incomes over $100,000 live paycheck-to-paycheck, including 12% struggling to pay their bills.

Furthermore, 53% percent of those who make between $50,000 and $100,000 annually live paycheck-to-paycheck, with 18% struggling to pay their bills. And 73% of those who make less than $50,000 per year said they were existing on a paycheck-to-paycheck basis, with 33% struggling to pay their bills.

Demographically, the largest group living paycheck-to-paycheck is millennials (77%), especially the so-called “bridge millennials” between 33 to 42 years old (33%).

“The perception that only low-income individuals are living paycheck-to-paycheck simply is not the case today,” said Anuj Nayar, financial health officer at LendingClub. “Half of Americans in this country are not building a reserve or saving for retirement. They are on a treadmill daily deciding whether every dollar they make will help them live or weather a financial storm.

“On top of that, they are financially vulnerable, and, like we’ve seen for so many over the last year, if there is any disruption to their income-level, they won’t have sufficient savings to absorb the hardship.”