In the Federal Reserve Board’s annual Survey of Household Economics and Decisionmaking (SHED), more than half of respondents reported that their spending exceeded their income in the prior year.
15 Indeed, 44 percent of SHED respondents reported that they could not cover an emergency expense costing $ without selling something or borrowing money.16  New tools to help consumers manage their finances Given the complexity and importance of these decisions, it is encouraging to see the fastgrowing development of advanced, technology-enabled tools to help consumers navigate the complex issues in their financial lives.