Building Financial Confidence

(Feature Impact) Nearly everyone is carrying some level of insecurity about their financial future, even those who are trying to plan ahead. Economic uncertainty, fueled by persistent inflation, stagnant wages and a cooling job market, has led many Americans to feel like they’re falling behind, even when they’re doing many of the “right” things financially.

Though many are paying down debt, saving for retirement and building an emergency fund, they’re still asking, “Am I doing enough?” In fact, only 21% of Americans are financially prepared and assured in their ability to protect their futures, according to Mutual of Omaha’s 2026 Protection Index Survey – a proprietary research study conducted with quantilope – which shows overall financial confidence has declined.

“Many people believe they need to wait until they have more money, more certainty or the perfect plan before taking action,” said Nate Hobson, vice president of sales, Advisor Network at Mutual of Omaha. “But financial confidence is usually built through consistency rather than perfect timing. Even small steps today can make a meaningful difference over time.”

While being financially secure means different things to different people, according to the survey – such as having little or no debt (34%), owning a home (29%), maintaining emergency savings (27%), saving for retirement (26%) or having insurance coverage (26%) – building financial confidence doesn’t have to translate to cutting out everything you enjoy. Instead, this expert guidance can help you be more intentional with the choices you make so your spending reflects your priorities.

Create a Financial Cushion

Whether it’s a car repair, medical bill or temporary loss of income, unexpected expenses happen.

Having even a modest emergency fund can reduce financial stress and reliance on credit cards or loans. If saving several months of expenses feels overwhelming, start with a smaller milestone. Consistency matters more than the starting amount.

Put Good Financial Habits on Autopilot

One of the easiest ways to make progress is removing the need to make the same decision every month. Consider setting up automatic contributions to savings and retirement accounts, regular investment deposits and automatic bill payments, which can help you build financial security even during busy or uncertain times.

Taking a look at everyday spending habits can also make a difference. The survey showed small, everyday choices add up over time, such as cutting non-essential spending (57%), using rewards programs (54%), comparing prices or switching providers (39%) and following a monthly budget (38%). That could mean bringing your lunch to work instead of grabbing takeout, taking a few extra minutes to compare prices at the grocery store or using rewards to get more value from the purchases you’re already making.

Protect What You’re Building

Saving and investing are important pieces of financial protection, but they’re only part of the equation. Protecting income, loved ones and other financial assets is equally important.

For families, life insurance can provide financial protection during key earning and caregiving years, helping replace income if the unexpected happens. For those focused on covering final expenses, guaranteed whole life insurance can help cover funeral and other end-of-life costs. If you’re approaching or living in retirement, an annuity may provide a reliable stream of income that can complement other retirement resources and reduce uncertainty.

A financial professional can help determine which options best fit your goals and circumstances. To see how much coverage is right for your situation, Mutual of Omaha’s Life Insurance Calculator can provide a personalized estimate based on your income, financial obligations and long-term goals.

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For more practical advice to build financial confidence, visit MutualofOmaha.com.

Taking Action with an Extra $1,000

If you unexpectedly received $1,000, your response with the extra cash may reveal your financial priorities and where additional planning could strengthen financial resilience.

Providing a window into Americans’ financial priorities, respondents in Mutual of Omaha’s 2026 Protection Index Report said they would:

• Pay down debt (25%)
• Add it to savings (21%)
• Use it for everyday expenses (14%)
• Invest it (9%)

Photos courtesy of Shutterstock

SOURCE:

Mutual of Omaha

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Survey: Credit isn’t a backup plan. For millions of Americans, it’s how they buy groceries.

(Sheeka Sanahori) Sixty-six percent of Americans carrying at least $10,000 in unsecured debt used a credit card to buy groceries in the last year, more than any other essential expense, according to a new survey. Credit cards were once reserved for expensive purchases or for added security in buying online. For households managing debt, they have become a way to cover everyday purchases like groceries.

Accredited Debt Relief, a company specializing in debt relief, commissioned Atomik Research in May 2026 to survey 2,000 U.S. adults with at least $10,000 in unsecured debt. Along with groceries, 47% say they’ve used credit for gas or transportation, 45% for utilities and 33% for rent or housing costs.

For people struggling with cost-of-living pressures, using unsecured debt can begin as a quick solution to cover household needs for the moment. At first, it’s just milk and eggs. But then an unexpected expense happens: a flat tire, an unusually high electricity bill, a medical cost that was not in the budget. The balance adds up and, according to the survey data, this also creates stress for consumers.

This isn’t discretionary spending. The data reflects a growing reliance on consumer debt to cover basic cost-of-living needs. However, relying on borrowed money without an executable plan for repaying it could mean that one day, the runway for taking care of such expenses runs out.

A significant share of respondents report relying on credit as a routine part of managing their personal finances. This routine could become a long-term debt cycle for many households. Nearly three in ten say that they rely on credit or borrowing to get through a typical month. This reliance appears to be growing, with a third saying they depend on credit more than they did a year ago. For those consumers, what may have once been a stopgap has become an increasingly common and ongoing financial strategy.

The growing debt cycle by unsecured borrowing is taking an emotional toll on these consumers, too. A quarter of respondents are concerned about their financial future and 12% feel a stronger concern that they’re at risk of long-term financial instability.

A lack of savings makes the cycle harder to break. Only 28% of respondents say they can both cover expenses and save. When there is little room between income and expenses, every disruption becomes harder to absorb.

Unexpected expenses, such as medical bills or car repairs, lead 19% of respondents to take on additional debt every time, and 27% most of the time. These are the kinds of costs households are often told to prepare for, but preparation requires room. For many consumers, that room does not exist.

Debt builds over time when credit becomes part of monthly operations. Some of these consumers say they don’t earn enough to make meaningful changes to their current financial situation. Among those surveyed, 45% report that their income is enough to get by but not get ahead. Many report that their financial situation has caused them to put off taking a vacation or begin building savings.

When asked about the biggest barrier to reducing debt, 29% of respondents listed the same obstacle: the cost of everyday expenses. That number connects how debt builds with why it persists.

When everyday expenses become part of ongoing credit card debt, the balance can grow without notice. Even when a consumer gets their next paycheck, if it’s already accounted for, they may not be able to make much progress in paying down their debts. A few recurring costs, spread across months, can become a greater financial weight. The result is debt that builds, because it’s tied to the basic cost of living. It also can create a stressful way to live; more than three in ten people say their current debt situation has affected their mental well-being.

Without meaningful changes, whether through increased income, debt relief or other financial support, these households may continue to rely on consumer debt and unsecured credit as a daily necessity rather than a strategic financial tool or occasional supplement. The risk is that life’s most basic needs become harder to maintain in the long run.

Methodology
Accredited Debt Relief commissioned Atomik Research to conduct an online survey of 2,000 U.S. adults with at least $10,000 in unsecured debt. The margin of error is plus or minus 2 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence level. Fieldwork was conducted between May 11-14, 2026. Atomik Research, part of 4media group, is a creative market research agency.

Photo courtesy of Shutterstock (tap to pay)

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SOURCE:

Accredited Debt Relief

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New partnerships in Fresno and Kansas join ongoing operations in Omaha, St. Louis, Santa Barbara and Los Angeles

As millions of students return to classrooms, transportation company Zūm is beginning the 2026–27 school year with new district partnerships, expanded technology deployments and thousands of drivers preparing for what the company calls “the most important commute in America.”

The Redwood City, California-based student mobility company announced that its teams have completed months of driver training, route validation and operational planning ahead of the new academic year.

“There is nothing quite like the first day of school at Zum,” founder and CEO Ritu Narayan said in the company’s announcement. “You see drivers arriving before sunrise, teams making final preparations and buses rolling out of yards across the country—all united around one purpose: getting students safely and reliably to school.”

New buses roll out in Fresno

One of Zūm’s largest new launches is in California’s Fresno Unified School District. According to the company, 168 buses were placed into service just two weeks after its local team moved into a new transportation yard.

The district is also introducing the Zūm Parent App, which allows families to track buses in real time, receive arrival alerts, view scheduled rides and receive notifications when a child boards or exits a bus. Registered students will receive bus cards connected to the transportation system, according to Fresno Unified.

The rollout is part of a broader change in how Fresno Unified manages student transportation. Routes and stops will continue to be evaluated using registration information, actual ridership and family feedback, the district says. Beginning September 28, registered students will generally be required to show a bus pass before boarding. Fresno Unified’s transportation page provides registration instructions and assistance for families.

Technology comes to LAUSD’s in-house fleet

In Los Angeles, Zūm says its CMX technology has been deployed across the Los Angeles Unified School District’s internally operated bus fleet.

The platform is designed to connect routing, dispatch, drivers, schools, transportation officials and families through one operating system. Its tools include real-time vehicle visibility, route planning, operational coordination and family communications.

Rather than replacing the district’s in-house drivers, the Los Angeles deployment focuses on providing the technology used to coordinate district-operated buses.

New partnership in Kansas

Zūm also began a new partnership with the Shawnee Mission School District in Kansas. District leaders, drivers, monitors and school employees marked the start of the program with a launch celebration.

The company said Shawnee Mission’s transition is intended to give the district a more modern and technology-supported approach to student transportation.

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Meanwhile, Zūm is returning for a third school year in Omaha and Santa Barbara. Its St. Louis operation is entering its second year.

Drivers remain at the center

Although technology plays a growing role in school transportation, Zūm emphasized that drivers remain essential to the daily experience of students and their families.

“Back to school is when months of preparation come to life,” said Liz Sanchez, Zūm’s executive vice president of student mobility. “Our teams spend months hiring and training drivers, validating routes and working alongside our district partners to prepare.”

Drivers often serve as the first school-related adults students see in the morning and the last they see before returning home. Their work can also determine whether students arrive safely and on time—especially in communities where families have limited transportation choices.

A changing school-bus experience

School transportation has traditionally depended on separate systems for scheduling, dispatching, vehicle tracking and communicating with parents. Zūm CMX is designed to bring those functions together and give school districts a clearer view of their daily operations.

For families, the most visible change may be access to real-time bus locations and arrival notifications. These tools can reduce some of the uncertainty associated with late buses, route changes and missed pickups.

Zūm reports that its technology and transportation services now support more than 6,500 schools across 19 states. As the company expands, the 2026–27 school year will test how effectively its technology, drivers and district partnerships can translate into dependable daily service.

For students, however, the goal remains straightforward: a safe ride to school, a reliable trip home and one less obstacle between them and their education.

This article is based primarily on information provided in an August 21, 2026, Zūm press release. Statements about the company’s national reach, fleet deployments and technology are attributed to Zūm unless independently noted.

Source: Zūm official website

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Related links:

• Fresno Unified: Zūm Parent App
• Fresno Unified: New Transportation Model
• Fresno Unified: Bus Routes
• Fresno Unified: Back-to-School Resources

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