Most U.S. consumers expect to get a tax refund this year, and they plan to stick their windfall in the piggy bank.
A February 2019 survey from the National Retail Federation (NRF) showed that nearly two in three U.S. adults said that they expected a tax refund this year, and half of those respondents said they planned to save it. That was in line with trends the NRF has seen since 2012, when plans to save became more common than paying down debt.
Historical data from the NRF indicates that paying down debt took precedence following the 2008 financial crisis, until savings took over in 2012, suggesting consumers remain focused on their financial security. Even so, 49% of respondents to the 2018 NRF survey said that they planned to save their refund, but just 41% of respondents to this year’s survey said that they actually had saved their 2018 tax refund.
