20.03.2019
Survey: 6 out of 10 Austrians are satisfied with their financial situation
- Austrians plan to invest more this year: around EUR 5,700 (+21%)
- 30% are planning investments in securities
- Average loan amount drops to EUR 59,100 (-25%)
Stock investments on the rise
30% (+2) of Austrians are planning to invest money in the stock market in 2019. This is a good plan considering the persistently low interest rates. “We are also seeing savings going into investment funds at much higher rates since the beginning of this year,” said Thomas Schaufler, Retail CEO of Erste Bank Oesterreich. Still, the savings passbook remains a popular option and gained three percentage points. 65% put their money into savings passbooks. Building society schemes are attractive to every other Austrian (49%, -1), while retirement provisioning through insurance policies declined slightly. A share of 33% (-6) intend to buy life insurance and 31% (-5) want to start an insurance-based retirement plan.
Austrians are also generally very satisfied with their personal financial situation. 61% are satisfied, 25% at least partly. Only 13% are dissatisfied with their current financial situation. This is the result of a survey conducted by Integral on behalf of Erste Bank and Sparkassen.
Stock investments on the rise
30% (+2) of Austrians are planning to invest money in the stock market in 2019. This is a good plan considering the persistently low interest rates. “We are also seeing savings going into investment funds at much higher rates since the beginning of this year,” said Thomas Schaufler, Retail CEO of Erste Bank Oesterreich. Still, the savings passbook remains a popular option and gained three percentage points. 65% put their money into savings passbooks. Building society schemes are attractive to every other Austrian (49%, -1), while retirement provisioning through insurance policies declined slightly. A share of 33% (-6) intend to buy life insurance and 31% (-5) want to start an insurance-based retirement plan.
Austrians are also generally very satisfied with their personal financial situation. 61% are satisfied, 25% at least partly. Only 13% are dissatisfied with their current financial situation. This is the result of a survey conducted by Integral on behalf of Erste Bank and Sparkassen.
Declining loan amounts
37% of Austrians are planning a major purchase in 2019. The share of persons who want to borrow funds by taking out a bank loan or a building society loan has risen steeply by 17% (+9). One reason for this trend is probably the still very attractive interest rates for both consumer loans and housing loans.
The average loan amount that Austrians intend to apply for is much lower by comparison. According to a survey, the average loan is EUR 59,100, while at the end of 2017 it was EUR 78,800. At Erste Bank Oesterreich, we have not yet noticed this trend: “The average amount being borrowed for housing loans has risen, while the amount for consumer loans has remained relatively constant,” explained Schaufler. For savings and investments, the amounts are much higher. On average, it is assumed that EUR 5,700 are available for new investments and re-investments. This is EUR 1,000 more than in the period of comparison.
Erste Bank forecast on savings and loans Q4 2018: Integral interviewed 1,000 Austrians (representative for the Austrian population over the age of 14) by telephone and online interviews; the interviewees were asked how they were planning to save and invest their money, and also about their financial needs. The survey was conducted in Q4 during the period from the 29 November to 14 December 2018. Unless otherwise indicated, the figures of comparison are from the same quarter of the previous year.