SaverLife Credit Conundrum Initiative Highlights Ways to Build More Effective Debt Management Tools for LMI Households

Surveys and behavioral interventions tested across more than 100,000 households demonstrate how better-designed tools and communication can support people taking action on their debt

SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. 20, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- SaverLife, a nonprofit that helps consumers build savings and improve their financial health through personalized, technology-enabled support, today shared findings from its Credit Conundrum Initiative, a multi-year effort involving more than 100,000 SaverLife members to better understand the debt attitudes and experiences of low- to moderate-income (LMI) households. Through surveys, analysis of transaction data, interviews, and interventions tested, the project found that better-designed debt management tools, particularly those that emphasize personalization, enable prioritization, and use incentives to encourage autosaving, help people close the gap between knowing their debt is unmanageable and taking action to make progress.

“Millions of Americans are struggling with unmanageable debt and the current solutions on the market don’t seem to be enough,” said Mariel Beasley, head of product and insights at SaverLife. “We wanted to understand what gets in the way of people using the resources that already exist, and what it takes to help people engage with solutions that could improve their financial lives.”

High credit usage and unmanageable debt
A survey of more than 1,400 members and an analysis of transaction data of more than 20,000 members helped establish a baseline for how LMI households view and experience debt manageability, credit scores, and types and amounts of debt. Through connected financial accounts, SaverLife members also opted to share visibility into transaction-level data surrounding debt payments. Together, they found:

• Nearly all respondents (94%) reported using at least one type of debt product.
• Those with debt held an average of 2.7 debt products per person, including credit cards (82%), store cards (39%), federal student loans (33%), auto loans (33%), and mortgages (26%).
• Members make an average of 4.8 debt payments each month.
• The average amount of each monthly payment is $128.
• Twenty-six percent (26%) of members are likely “rounding up” a loan payment.
  
  

For many, this level of debt is burdensome. One-third (33%) of participants said their debt was unmanageable. But despite a majority (73%) of respondents being aware of debt management products, such as credit counseling, debt consolidation, and debt settlement, few actually used them. Distrust is the top reason for this low utilization, with 33% of SaverLife members saying they do not trust the organizations offering debt management tools.

Improving uptake and utilization of debt management tools
With these findings in hand, SaverLife launched three debt-related interventions across 100,000 members to understand what helps people move from recognizing that their debt is unmanageable to taking action to address it. The interventions included an AI-powered debt diagnostic tool to identify participants’ unique needs and pair them with personalized solutions, a test of three different debt repayment tips to determine which was most motivating and feasible, and incentives for pledging to pay extra on a debt.

• Participants in the debt diagnostic were 10x more likely to act on a recommendation to talk to a debt counselor compared to traditional encouragement methods like email.
• Eighty-seven percent (87%) of individuals who started the tool completed the diagnostic, and 35% continued on to additional debt or credit support.
• Messages encouraging members to round up their debt payments generated 43% more engagement than other types of recommendations.
• Twenty percent (20%) of the participants in the pledge committed to increasing their loan payment, and by an average of $18.

“Our Credit Conundrum work shows that how we engage with people around debt can make small but meaningful differences,” continued Beasley. “For providers, it’s important to first help individuals think about their debt, prioritize their goals, and then provide personalized next steps that feel low-risk and are easy to start.”

To learn more about the Credit Conundrum Initiative, please visit https://saverlife.org/research/credit-conundrum.

About SaverLife
SaverLife is a national nonprofit and fintech using technology to improve the financial lives of people living on low- to moderate- incomes. Through its fintech product and research, SaverLife amplifies the voices and priorities of its more than 800,000 members to help ensure financial products, programs, and policies support their unique financial health journeys.

MEDIA CONTACT:
Michael Azzano
Cosmo PR for SaverLife
415/596-1978
michael@cosmo-pr.com