Pod Insights The Clark Howard Podcast 11.27.24 BEST OF: Americans Need To SAVE MORE / Physical Health - Fiscal Health About this episode Happy Thanksgiving Week! Please enjoy this Best Of episode. Clark returns December 2nd with new ways to Save More, Spend Less and Avoid Getting Ripped Off! The percent of income we save, our savings rate - is the key indicator of financial health. So how are we doing right now? Also - How much exercise do you really need to make a difference in your health, and ultimately your wallet? Only 25% of Americans get the recommended amount of exercise. New data reveals what a big difference the minimum requirement can make for those who are mostly sedentary. American Savings Rates: Segment 1 Ask Clark: Segment 2 Arise From The Couch: Segment 3 Ask Clark: Segment 4 Mentioned on the show: Americans are saving less and spending more. Could that raise the risk of recession? Bankruptcy filings are on the rise. Here's why an even bigger surge is looming. Why 'Buy Now, Pay Later' Worries Clark Howard My Credit Card Offers Some Rental Car Coverage. Why Do I Still Need To Involve My Primary Auto Insurance? Car Rental Insurance: Everything You Need To Know How Much Exercise Do You Need? More Than You Think—But Every Little Bit Helps. Donor-Advised Funds: The Benefits and Drawbacks Vanguard Charitable: Home What Is Black? Uber Black Car Service Clark.com resources Episode transcripts Community. Clark.com Clark.com daily money newsletter Consumer Action Center Free Helpline: 636-492-5275 Learn more about your ad choices: megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Transcript 0:01 Speaker 00 Life is all about making decisions. Sometimes you make questionable ones, like buying a new TV that's too big for the wall because the electronics store employee was a little too good at their job. Then sometimes you make great ones, like protecting your home and auto with Progressive. You get customized coverage options so you can be sure you have the right coverage. Get your quote today at progressive.com. Progressive Casualty Insurance Company affiliates and other insurers, not available in all states.
0:32 Speaker 01 The holidays are coming, but the Lincoln Wish List Sales Event is already here. And with exceptional offers on select Lincoln vehicles, you might just cross the perfect gift off your own list. You know, the kind that doesn't need wrapping? Consider this a little reminder to be good to yourself this time of year. Visit your local Lincoln dealer or go to lincoln.com to learn more.
1:00 Speaker 02 I am off on adventures, so this is a best of edition of the Clark Howard Podcast. I hope you enjoy it. I want to wish you a very happy Thanksgiving. Have an enjoyable holiday week.
1:20 Speaker 02 It's my pleasure to welcome you here to the Clark Howard Show, where our mission is to serve you with advice and information that empowers you so you make better financial decisions in your life. And first up today, the numbers are not good on how Americans are saving. We were saving much better before, and we're in a real down cycle right now. And it leads to an unhappy cause and effect for so many Americans, so many families. And later, so much research now about the role of exercise in improving your physical
2:04 Speaker 02 health and longevity. I have some clear new data and weirdly also affects your wallet. That's right, your physical health affects your physical health.
2:17 Speaker 02 But let's talk about our fiscal health for a second. The latest data shows that Americans, the average American is saving, count them, three cents of every dollar they make, three cents. Now, this is not good. During COVID, when people were stranded at home, depending on where you were in the United States for how many months, that we were living solitary confined kind of life in the United States, the savings rates just went through the roof, much more like they are in the rest of the world.
3:01 Speaker 02 In Asia, it's common that people save a third of what they make. In a lot of the rest of the developed world, people tend to save somewhere close to 20% of what they make. The United States, 3%. And there are specific reasons why this happens in the United States. And the if then, so when the savings rates go down in the United States, what also goes up? The bankruptcy rate, the delinquency rate on credit cards, the delinquency rate on
3:40 Speaker 02 auto loans, that the savings rate is the key indicator of what happens in the financial health of an individual and the financial security of an individual or a family. Now, there's a divide here. If someone is working a minimum wage or near minimum wage job, there is no spare money. There is no spare money. There just isn't. Then I read stories like, there was one that was in, I think it was in the New York Post, about people who were living paycheck to paycheck, who, okay, don't fall over laughing,
4:23 Speaker 02 but people were all whining in this story that were making a quarter million dollars a year. Seriously. Okay.
4:33 Speaker 02 I know we have suffered the brutal phase of inflation that we had for two years. So many costs are so much higher. I talked recently that grocery prices are 19% higher than they were before the COVID-induced inflationary cycle. When prices go up, they kind of sit there. So it's costing us more for things. Food is taking a bigger chunk out of people's budget. If you look at the income scale, the lower the income, the bigger a chunk of your monthly money goes to food. As you move up the income line, that 19% increase has amazingly little effect on your
5:18 Speaker 02 overall budget. So much of what happens with spending are the decisions we make. And we are a consumerist culture. We are a culture where everything is about, I see it, I want it, that settles it. And so this is not a guilt trip for anybody. That's not what I'm saying. I'm saying we are part of products of the culture we grow up in, that we live in. And I was reading recently, how many people of all income levels are grabbing a hold of paying for, which if you're a longtime listener or viewer, you know I despise paying
5:57 Speaker 02 for, because it feeds into this, I see it, I want it, that settles it. And people buy things on impulse. And so it's almost like if I'm talking to you, if you feel like you can't control your spending impulses, you go back to basics. And the basics are that you pay yourself first. An old trite phrase with lots of power behind it. That if you're saving, like the average American, you're saving three cents of every dollar. That is not enough. To create comfort for the future, financial independence for the future.
6:40 Speaker 02 And it certainly isn't enough to have a good rainy day account, an oops account for the present. And then it leads to those other things I talked about. The rise in delinquencies on various types of loans, the bankruptcy filings and all that. One follows the other. So you can't fix what's going on next door or down the street or in the country with how individuals and families are managing their money. So the only thing you can do is fix what's going on in your own life, in your own wallet, in your own four walls. And so I love for you to build new habits.
7:21 Speaker 02 I'm so into habits because creating good habits makes a difference. You know, one of my habits is I like to exercise all the time. I have not exercised in three days. It's driving me crazy that I have not exercised in three days. It's something that I need for myself. In the same way, I need to save money so that I know that I'm financially secure. And so the easiest way is I talked about just the other day on the podcast is when an employer has an employer sponsored retirement plan. But if they don't do a split payroll deduction, when you deposit your paycheck,
8:06 Speaker 02 put some of it into a savings account, put some of it into Roth IRA. Take money upfront and put it aside and then live on what's left. Pay in for? No, no pay in for. Pay in for is a curse on your financial security. I despise it. And Krista, if you go back, I guess, five years ago was when paying for came to our shores. I predicted when I talked about it that first time, what did I say?
8:42 Speaker 03 Oh, you said it was going to be a huge problem.
8:44 Speaker 02 It was going to be a disaster.
8:45 Speaker 03 Yeah.
8:45 Speaker 02 Because it had been in other countries. It had brutalized people's finances. When you're at the register, they say, wouldn't you like to pay in four? You're checking out online, it says, you can pay in four easy payments. Uh-uh, they're not easy. They're not good. Don't do it. And if you know that your pattern with shopping is an impulse shopper, put things in your cart if you're shopping online on your phone, and let them sit there. Let them sit. Then later you'll realize, ah, I really don't need that. Needs, wants. Do you need it?
9:25 Speaker 02 You need food on the table, but do you really need, you don't, that new outfit?
9:32 Speaker 03 All right. Go to questions now?
9:34 Speaker 02 Yeah. Was that too preachy?
9:36 Speaker 03 No, I mean, I think it's important. We all have to think about these things for sure. I love that leave things in the cart and come back to them. I always delete them. So that definitely works for me. And maybe people can write in with their own tips. Like, because I'm also someone who, I'm not as disciplined. So the way I do discipline myself is, like you said, I set it and forget it. The money goes into accounts before I ever see it. I put things in, I like categorizing things, and it just, it works with my brain.
10:01 Speaker 02 You've always been the modern version of what people used to call the envelope method, where you always do mental accounting and you say, okay, I'm putting this much money in this for this, I'm putting money in this for that. And you want to make sure that you're on track for all the different things. I'm impressed with how you've always done that.
10:21 Speaker 03 It's the only thing that works for me.
10:23 Speaker 02 It works?
10:24 Speaker 03 Ron in Michigan wrote in. He said, I'm traveling in the Bay Area. During our sightseeing tour along the wharf, our rental car was broken into. They took everything, including my German colleague's passports and insulin. Thankfully, the German consulate was able to reissue temporary passports quickly. The Germans opted to fly back home with just enough insulin to make it to Berlin. So first of all, please tell everyone that California is a mess. Do not leave anything of value in your car. Will break the window to steal almost anything. This is well known to all the locals and law enforcement, not so well known by business travelers like myself. Second, what should I do? I've lost probably $2,500 to $3,500 in electronics,
11:06 Speaker 03 computer, iPad, Bose noise cancelling headphones, luggage, clothing, etc. My insurance company will increase my rate if I claim more than $750. I hate to think I'm out the value of all these things, but I also don't want to issue a claim against my homeowners to only have them jack up my rate and pay far more than the value of the items over time. I'm embarrassed to show my German coworkers this welcome.
11:29 Speaker 02 Ron, I am so sorry on so many levels about everything that happened in this case. If it makes you feel any better, I've had my car broken into in New York, Amsterdam, in southern Spain, and my car broken into in Atlanta.
11:46 Speaker 03 Yeah, it's not just California.
11:48 Speaker 02 Yeah, there was one other place I'm trying to remember because I've been, I've had five windows smashed over the years. I remember when the window was smashed in Amsterdam, they stole all my stuff. We were riding around, it was cold that day and rainy and no window and, and trying to find the car rental place to get a new window in the car. And I mean, it's just, crime is so upsetting on so many levels. And I hate what happened with the passports being stolen and all your stuff being stolen. So one thing I will tell you, the credit card you use for the car rental
12:29 Speaker 02 may have coverage for this, depending on what kind of card it is. It may have theft coverage built in as one of the, you know, they have those, a lot of cards will have those laundry lists of benefits, you know, things they'll pay for. So you may have coverage with that. You are completely right not to file a claim against homeowners insurance because that could be really bad, ugly. And I, I hate this whole experience and it can happen even in what you think is a protected parking lot. Now, it is true, all five times that my car was broken into is because of my obsession with free parking.
13:13 Speaker 02 And parking maybe in areas that were a little sketch or a lot sketch. And so I may have invited someone to do that. But there's no excuse for people who steal other people's things. It's just no excuse. So check the credit card angle. Other than that, this is just, there's no life's lesson from this either. It's just.
13:39 Speaker 03 Well, definitely don't, don't leave computers or anything in the car for sure.
13:43 Speaker 02 Thank you. Sometimes bad things happen to good people and car break-ins are exactly that kind of thing.
13:51 Speaker 03 Their insulin, it's just unbelievable. Thomas in Arizona says, I recently returned rental cars to one of the big companies. Two weeks in a row with full tanks of gas, but was charged a fuel surcharge. The first was a printed receipt given to me by the person checking in the car. I was able to go to the rental counter to get the charge reversed. The other was a receipt, a receipt on the tram back to the airport. I had a picture of the full tank and odometer reading and a receipt from the gas station where I refilled the car less than five miles from the rental return. This time I had to submit the proof and I'm still waiting for a refund. They listed the amount of gas they had to put in the car. The first agent never took the car away from where I returned it. Since I received the e-recite so quickly, I doubt they put any gas in the tank.
14:37 Speaker 03 Since I rented the car through Costco, should I contact them? Should I contact the state's consumer fraud department? Please warn all your listeners to document that they returned with a full tank.
14:47 Speaker 02 So I've been reading why the car rental agencies are being extra abusive towards customers right now. You've got to pay such close attention. I always say, when I come back, I say, I just filled the tank. Do you need to see my gas receipt? And that's already putting in their head, they're going to put eight of eight in on their device. And I stand there and I review the receipt before I leave. If they're doing an e-re seat, it comes almost immediately. I read it before I leave that area. Taking the pictures, so important. If the car rental agency does not give you a timely credit for the gas,
15:31 Speaker 02 you dispute a partial dispute of the bill with your credit card company. And it will usually be an amount less than $20, $25 for the gasoline. Most credit card companies will just waive that credit right through because it's cheaper for them than having to deal with the car rental agency that took advantage of you. It is hand to hand combat right now. You've got something that is three companies own all the car rental agencies pretty much, and they are really tightening the screws on customers so many ways, but especially with rip off charges when you return your vehicle.
16:14 Speaker 02 And that's why you have to thoroughly document the condition of the vehicle when you return it. You want, as you did, you want proof that you have filled that tank. And look at the paperwork because if they do hit you with some kind of weird fee, you've got to be willing to stand up for your rights and get your money back. I think the car rental agencies are expecting, well, it's only $20. And most of these people are corporate. They're not going to do anything. And they may be right about the corporate kind of travelers. On the Costco angle, I don't know if notifying Costco Travel
16:57 Speaker 02 gets you to somebody special at a car rental agency. It would be a worthwhile experiment to see what happens because on Costco Travel, there's a thing that you can click when you've had a problem with a supplier. And you could file it there and see if that leads to any response that's useful from Costco Travel or from the car rental agency. But be on your guard when you rent a car because it's an industry right now that seems to have lost its ethical compass.
17:30 Speaker 02 So coming ahead, we're going to talk about exercise. What if you're a couch potato? Is there like nothing you can do that's going to make a difference? What if you already exercise a lot? When is exercising more too much? We're going to talk about that.
17:49 Speaker 00 Life is all about making decisions. Sometimes you make questionable ones like buying a new TV that's too big for the wall because the electronics store employee was a little too good at their job. Then sometimes you make great ones like protecting your home and auto with Progressive. You get customized coverage options so you can be sure you have the right coverage. Get your quote today at progressive.com. Progressive Casualty Insurance Company affiliates and other insurers not available in all states.
18:20 Speaker 01 The holidays are coming, but the Lincoln Wish List Sales Event is already here. And with exceptional offers on select Lincoln vehicles, you might just cross the perfect gift off your own list. You know, the kind that doesn't need wrapping? Consider this a little reminder to be good to yourself this time of year. Visit your local Lincoln dealer or go to lincoln.com to learn more.
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19:32 Speaker 02 If you live particularly in a suburban area and you do long distance commuting, it has kind of your hands tied behind your back on exercise. And you may not, because you're spending all that time commuting, you're sitting on your rear end in your car, you're getting to work, you may be in a job where you sit on your rear end. And then you get home, you're tired after your commute home, you're sitting on your rear end again on the sofa. And so, a lot of Americans' health deteriorates because you're just not getting any activity. Well, Barron's, of all people, is reporting on this because so many Barron's readers
20:17 Speaker 02 are people who sit and look at computer screens all day. And the story that they wrote and the research they did, the most important improvement in health is when people who live a very sedentary lifestyle get up and start doing any exercise at all. It can be as little as 75 minutes a week. You think about that, that's little more than 10 minutes a day of just getting out and walking. 10 minutes has significant health benefit and life longevity benefit.
20:57 Speaker 02 As far as the minutes of exercise that's really great to have per week, which is 150 minutes of exercise a week, of moderate exercise, which would be walking at a pretty good pace, something like that. What percent of Americans are doing that? Doing that plus some amount of resistance training? It could be Pilates, yoga, weightlifting, you name any kind of resistance thing. Only 25% of Americans are doing what would be the recommended amount. But there are people who do tons of exercise.
21:40 Speaker 02 And there's always been a debate among scientists whether you're better off curtailing beyond a certain amount. And actually, people who exercise up to 600 minutes a week have continuing health benefits from doing the exercise. But again, the greatest benefit is that 10 minutes a day for somebody who now gets zero. And so this is something that any of us can meet whatever standard it is, what we're doing, we can do more of up to a point, again, past
22:21 Speaker 02 10 hours a week. Think about that. We got 10 minutes a day at the beginner ranks and we have 10 hours a week of moderate or vigorous exercise at the high end. Beyond the 600, you're maybe not benefiting and maybe suffering. But doing the zero that so many Americans do is so harmful to you and how you're going to feel and how long you're going to live. So think about it, if you're somebody who's completely sedentary, 10 minutes, that's
23:02 Speaker 02 all I'm asking for. Get out and walk for 10 minutes, a timed 10 minute walk a day. You'll be amazed after three or four weeks, how much more energy you have, how much better you feel. You won't after a day or two or a week or two, but you start hitting a month or two, you'll feel much better. And then maybe you enjoy it so much, you start doing more. Don't try to do too much at once when you've been doing nothing, because it won't work. You build up. Krista, you do like a thousand minutes.
23:36 Speaker 03 I don't actually.
23:37 Speaker 02 You do a lot.
23:39 Speaker 03 I don't really so much anymore, not as much intense stuff. I walk every day, which I love. I walk my dogs a few miles a day. And I do like yoga sculpt and sometimes I do spin, but not as much as I used to. I don't like it being as intense, but like I do love to walk more.
23:54 Speaker 02 You know what I miss a lot?
23:55 Speaker 03 What?
23:56 Speaker 02 Is running.
23:56 Speaker 03 Yeah, I don't run.
23:57 Speaker 02 I can't, my body just won't take the running. Anymore. So I just walk really long times. I walk sometimes for up to three hours, which is probably four than I should. But I love walking. I do miss the running though.
24:15 Speaker 03 Yeah. Okay. Chris in Colorado wrote in saying, my wife and I want to buy a retirement property in Greece. I know someone who had many thousands of dollars stolen trying to buy a home in Mexico, and I'm worried about getting ripped off. What do you recommend to make sure I have everything in order to buy a house in another country?
24:33 Speaker 02 So Chris, take it slow, slow, slow. The most important thing, and this is true in most any foreign country, you rent for a number of years before you buy. You've got to immerse yourself in local culture. You've got to really understand it. The people who get in trouble buying, I think about when we talked about the story in Mexico where everybody lost their homes they'd paid for, because the government came along and said, yeah, none of you really had property rights to any of this. They lost all their money. They lost their homes. The problem,
25:13 Speaker 02 understanding local laws, how clear the rule of law is, how it works. I really want you, as much as you want to establish ownership of a home in Greece. This would be true for the people who are so into buying in Portugal right now, or buying for a while, Southern Spain was like the big deal. Take your time. You'll know when you know enough, and you understand the process and what's fair pricing enough after you've spent a few years renting. And when the time is right, and you'll know.
25:52 Speaker 02 Then you can buy. Now, there are a lot of bloggers who have blogs that target specifically owning property for Americans in foreign countries. And if you go out and search, you'll find people who write specifically about how you buy property in Greece, because that is an area of interest for Americans. And even though you'll find very useful information there, there's no substitute for you being a renter for sufficient time till you really, really, in your soul, your bones, you understand the buying process.
26:31 Speaker 03 Seth in Wisconsin says, "I've been listening to your show for the past 20 years, ever since I was a kid, and your show would come on after the Milwaukee Bucks games. I'm currently in my early 30s with a net worth in excess of $2 million. This is almost entirely because I live on significantly less than what I make and invested when I was young, as you've taught me. For all of this, I thank you."
26:53 Speaker 02 Certainly.
26:53 Speaker 03 "As I have begun to do the math of what this will accumulate to over the rest of my life, I'm looking at creating a nonprofit organization or foundation that my spouse and I will run, similar to a donor-advised fund. We plan to contribute appreciated stock on an annual basis and allow it to grow tax-free within the nonprofit. The goal is to get a large enough base that the annual appreciation would cover the next year's donation. As this is a new endeavor, and you have also been very charitable with your earnings, I'm curious if you have any tips or words of wisdom."
27:24 Speaker 02 So Seth, you set up front, similar to a donor-advised fund, I would do a donor-advised fund. I think it's a superior choice for what you want to do. If you set up, the most common kind of form of incorporation would be a foundation for what you want to do. The foundation rules, the paperwork, the amount of money you have to give away each year, the money you have put in the foundation, it's a straitjacket with a lot of expense, a lot of reporting requirements and the rest. That's why donor-advised funds are growing so quickly. The best donor-advised fund is the one from Vanguard.
28:08 Speaker 02 And it's designed really for people who invest in Vanguard. I don't know if you do. If you do, you're investing through one of my three favorite children Vanguard, Fidelity, or Schwab. They all three have donor advised funds. As you put more and more money in, the fees for them handling the donor advised fund, which is like stripped down much cheaper to run and much simpler rules than a foundation version of a found of having a foundation, the donor advised fund, the fees go down as more assets go in. You have much more flexibility to allow you get the upfront tax deduction each year for what you donate.
28:53 Speaker 02 And you can give away pretty much as much or as little as you want each year. You've already gotten the tax deduction. You control the money. You can have it be essentially self sustaining from the growth it'll have over the years. And the cost of administering it is a tiny, tiny fraction of what it is of you setting up a nonprofit or setting up your own foundation. It doesn't sound as cool to say, oh, well, I have a donor advised fund that, you know, whatever. Let me tell you, it works better and it's much more efficient.
29:31 Speaker 03 Mark in South Carolina says, I have 85 plus year old parents that live across the country and don't drive very well, several fender benders each over the past few years, but no bad accidents or harm to themselves or others yet. I pray every day that they don't harm anyone or themselves and that no one harms them. Road rage against them almost happened recently. They don't like Uber, Lyft, or even Envoy Services because there's a different driver every time. They are in denial about their abilities and risks. Even though they've had their car insurance canceled twice, they don't want to give up their independence. They live in a senior community that offers scheduled bus trips for medical, grocery, concerts, et cetera. And they use it very occasionally for nighttime
30:13 Speaker 03 events, such as they admit to not seeing well after dark. They could afford a personal driver. How do I find one for them?
30:21 Speaker 02 Okay, so here's how you do it. When you go on Uber, which you've said they don't like. They should pay the higher price for Uber Black. Uber Black are going to be licensed limo drivers or black car services. It used to be called black car service drivers.
30:43 Speaker 02 Those people use Uber as a way to get customers on a one time basis. But the real benefit to an Uber Black driver is they meet somebody who they can drive for regularly. It is like a calling card for people who have their own limo service. And I know so many people, well, I live in a, in a walking area where I see the black car services come up. And I'll talk to the drivers and they pick somebody up regularly. Like I was talking to a driver recently who gives this guy more than 80 rides a year.
31:27 Speaker 02 And so it's a regular thing. So whenever your, your parents would want a ride, that person's how they're going to do it. So what they do is it won't take long. They use Uber Black. They find the driver who they like after a few rides and they hire that driver independently to drive them regularly. I mean, you can do something where you can get online and try to find local limo services in the area they live in, in South Carolina and do it that way. But I think it's like an audition when they hire people through Uber Black, not regular Uber, Uber Black, it's on the same app.
32:10 Speaker 02 And they'll find that person who they feel comfortable with being their regular driver and getting them off the road. And it's, it's the recommendation that I know works over and over again. And I hope that they'll take it as a worthwhile suggestion. Try it and find that person that's perfect. And I want to thank you so much for joining us for today's podcast. Remember what we're about. We're about you walking a minimum 10 minutes a day. No, we're about you learning ways to save more, spend less and avoid getting ripped off.
32:57 Speaker 00 Progressive's Accident Response can contact emergency services if you're in a major accident. The only thing worse than someone you love being in an accident is not being able to help them. So Progressive is here to help when you can't. So get peace of mind knowing your loved ones are protected with Progressive's Accident Response. Learn more at progressive.com. Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and Affiliates. Limited availability in California. Driver is responsible for emergency and towing charges not covered by the policy. Coverage subject to policy terms and conditions.
Previous 11.26.24 BEST OF: Saving For College: 529 Plan Update / Upside Down Car Loans Next 11.29.24 BEST OF: Clark Answers His Critics on Clark Stinks / Clark Rule For Booking Travel Page updated November 7, 2026 · transcript and summary are machine-generated
