Comparing Military and Civilian Household Finances: Descriptive Evidence from Recent Surveys

Despite significant media and policy attention to the financial conditions of military and civilian households in American over the past few years, little is known about their relative standing and decision making. Using data from large national surveys, this analysis provides descriptive evidence on key differences for comparable young, low-moderate income and education military and civilian respondents. I find that military members have more types of savings accounts, more problematic credit card behaviors, and equivalent use of alternative financial services. I briefly discuss directions for future research and some policy implications.