This was a fun and rewarding story. Timely too. A survey from Coinstar shows that in this down economy people are using cash more and plastic less. So you'll probably have extra change lying around.
COINSTAR TRENDS POLL
Americans' Use of Cash. Twenty-three percent (23%) of Americans reported using cash more often to pay for purchases compared to one year ago.
-- More Budget Conscious. Eighty-four percent (84%) of respondents who reported using cash more often than one year ago to pay for purchases said this was to help control spending and manage their budgets. Six years ago when poll respondents who used cash more often were asked the same question (Coinstar National Currency Poll Dec. 2002), only 46% said they were using cash for this same reason.
-- Worries About Credit Card Debt. Nearly seven in 10 Americans (69%) who use cash more often say it's because they are concerned about credit card debt. This compares to 48 percent in 2002, nearly a 50% increase.
Americans Embrace Change. Nearly four in 10 Americans (36%) say they value loose change now more than they did a year ago.
-- Cashing in on Change. Two-thirds (66%) of Americans say they tend to accumulate loose change. And of those who accumulate change, 32 percent say they are recycling or cashing in their change more now than a year ago.
-- Young Americans More Coin Conscious. Forty-two percent (42%) of respondents ages 18-34 who accumulate change say they are cashing in change more now than a year ago, compared to only 26 percent of Americans age 55 and older.
-- Fun or Serious Money? Even in difficult economic times, Americans are still looking for a little fun. Nearly half (47%) of poll respondents say they plan to use their accumulated change for savings, but 46 percent also say they plan to spend it on fun purchases.
Financial Plans in Flux. It's clear that Americans are looking closely at their financial plans more than ever with 62 percent saying that the softer economy is causing them to change their plans for 2009. This compares to only 35 percent of Americans polled in 2001 (Coinstar National Currency Poll Dec. 2001) who said they planned to change their financial plans in 2002.
