Half of Americans Worry About Rising Interest Rates: Survey

Among the 48% who purported not to be concerned about interest rates going up, 16% said rates had been artificially low.

Five percent said they wanted the additional interest income on savings — and these were not just retirees:

• 18- to 29-year-olds: 8%
• 50- to 64-year-olds: 6%
• 65 and older: 7%

Financial Security Remains Positive

Bankrate’s Financial Security Index, a numerical expression of Americans’ level of financial security, asks Americans about how their savings, job security and other financial factors now compared with last year. Anything over a threshold of 100 indicates that respondents consider themselves better off than a year ago.

In January, the index fell to 101 from 104.3 in December — still a level that indicates improved financial security over the past year, according to Bankrate.

Half of respondents said they were as comfortable with the amount of debt they carried as they were a year ago. The rest were about evenly split, with 24% saying they were less comfortable and 23% more comfortable.

Those under age 50 or with household income of less than $50,000 were likelier to say they were less comfortable with their debt now than one year ago.