2006 Jumpstart Questionaire Part 4 at Catch a Gideon

November 4th, 2006 by digerati

This survey establishes that there are serious misconceptions about various financial topics. The questions are not difficult, bu the average score on the survey was only 52.4%! Take a look at the questions and see how many you know. Starred answers are the correct ones. I’ve added some notes after each question.

16. Which of the following statements best describes your right to check your credit history for accuracy?

14.7% a) All credit records are the property of the U.S. Government and access

is only available to the FBI and Lenders.

28.9% b) You can only check your record for free if you are turned down for

credit based on a credit report.

*50.1% c) Your credit record can be checked once a year for free.

6.3% d) You cannot see your credit record.

17. Your take home pay from your job is less than the total amount you earn. Which of the following best describes what is taken out of your total pay?

*53.0% a) Federal income tax, social security and Medicare contributions

17.2% b) Federal income tax, sales tax, and social security contribution

9.5% c) Social security and Medicare contributions

20.2% d) Federal income tax, property tax, and Medicare and social security

contributions

18. Retirement income paid by a company is called:

3.6% a) Rents and profits

25.9% b) Social Security

32.9% c) 401k I’ll call this answer acceptable too since many companies no longer provide a pension and instead match contributions to a 401k account.

*37.7% d) Pension

19. Many people put aside money to take care of unexpected expenses. If John and Jenny have money put aside for emergencies, in which of the following forms would it be of LEAST benefit to them if they needed it right away?

35.6% a) Stocks

13.1% b) Savings account

*42.7% c) Invested in a down payment on the house. This is totally not liquid. Emergency money should be available immediately when needed, not based on a transaction or phone calls and such.

8.6% d) Checking account

20. Justin just found a job with a take-home pay of $2,000 per month. He must pay $800 for rent and $200 for groceries each month. He also spends $200 per month on transportation. If he budgets $100 each month for clothing, $150 for restaurants and $250 for everything else, how long will it take him to accumulate savings of $900.

5.9% a) 1 month

14.0% b) 2 months

*66.3% c) 3 months

13.8% d) 4 months