Credit for the Westside:

Access to financial services is not enough—the quality and design of access matter, necessitating the expansion of inclusive banking pathways.

While most Westside residents have a relationship with a traditional bank or credit union, many use online-only banks and a substantial share turn to alternative financial services. These patterns suggest that being “banked” is not synonymous with being well served. Financial inclusion therefore requires more than connecting residents to financial institutions; it requires building inclusive banking pathways that pair appropriate, affordable products and services with community-informed financial education and engagement.

Beyond being “banked”: differences in access and utilization

While most Westside residents reported having a relationship with a traditional bank or credit union (77%), banking access and utilization take a variety of forms. Notably, 28% reported using an online-only bank, nearly twice the rate among other respondents (15%). This includes residents who maintain online-only accounts alongside other financial institutions, suggesting that residents may layer banking relationships to meet different financial needs rather than relying on a single institution.

Figure 3: Westside Residents’ Banking Access & Utilization

Focus group and interview responses help to explain residents’ concerns with conventional banking institutions, stemming from unexpected or unfair fees, confusing terms, and distrust. Among Westside residents, being served does not always mean being served well, as access to a financial institution does not necessarily translate into a positive or supportive banking experience. As one participant shared:

"I mean, they didn't really offer much support when I was penalized with fees and they didn’t offer any types of rewards and benefits and stuff like that.”

Another explained:

“I still do not have a bank account, that way I don’t have to worry about wrongdoing.”

Distrust extended beyond individual experiences to perceptions of the broader mainstream banking system and its relationship with the community. As one resident shared:

“I know a lot of people kind of stray away from traditional banking, especially in our community. People have misconceptions.”

Even when respondents had heard good things about banks and credit unions, they didn’t see a path to leveraging those benefits for themselves:

“People have lots of great things to say about credit unions, but I don't really know how to use that to my benefit."

Residents' perceptions of online banks were similarly mixed. Participants praised online banks such as Chime for features like automated savings, quick access to small-dollar loans, and credit-builder products, while also expressing frustration with automated-only customer support. Several participants emphasized the importance of user-friendly digital platforms that make it easier to budget, save, and track expenses. These perspectives suggest that residents value the convenience and flexibility of digital banking, while still wanting access to responsive, human support when they encounter problems or have questions.

Banking access does not guarantee financial security

Among Westside residents, banking access did not necessarily translate into financial security. As shown in Figure 4, 86% of residents reported having either a checking account or a savings/money market account, although savings account uptake was lower among Westside residents than other respondents (40% vs. 56%). This points to the need for wider and more varied account access. Specialty accounts such as Second Chance accounts may be helpful options for individuals who have difficulty qualifying for a traditional bank account.

Residents also reported saving outside of conventional accounts, with 15% exclusively using cash (non-digital) savings and 5% saving exclusively through peer-to-peer apps such as Zelle, Venmo, or Cash App.

Figure 4: Banking & Savings Account Ownership

Residents with savings accounts were more financially resilient than those without. As shown in Figure 5, those with savings accounts were more likely to have money left over at the end of the month (50% vs. 13%), more likely to save regularly (22% vs. 16%), and more likely to be able to afford a $500+ emergency expense (62% vs. 48%). However, savings account holders also reported substantial financial strain: 82% had used at least one alternative financial service in the previous year, 62% had experienced unexpected banking or loan fees, and 59% reported that finances control their lives “often” or “almost always.” These findings suggest that while bank account ownership is associated with greater financial capacity, residents can still experience financial strain – pointing to the need for greater interventions than account access alone.

Figure 5: Westside Financial Experiences With & Without Savings Accounts

Use of alternative financial services

Beyond traditional bank accounts, a majority (68%) of Westside residents reported using one or more alternative financial services in the past year. These services include products offered outside traditional banks and credit unions that can provide short-term access to credit or cash but often carry higher fees and interest costs. Examples include car title loans, short-term installment and online personal loans, check-cashing services, Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL), and payday loan apps (also known as earned wage access or EWA), as discussed further in section three.¹⁶

As shown in Figure 6, common categories of alternative financial services used by Westside residents include alternative borrowing/high-cost credit products, used by 39% of residents; cash-flow management/short-term liquidity services like BNPL and payday loan apps (36%); alternative banking/cash-access services (32%); and alternative sources of cash, such as plasma/platelet donation and pawning items for cash (9%).

Figure 6: Alternative Financial Services Used in the Past Year

*Note: Calculations exclude four datapoints where the alternative financial services question was left blank. Because respondents could select multiple services, category percentages are not expected to sum to 100%.

There was considerable overlap between Westside residents who had used alternative financial services and those who also reported mainstream banking challenges. For example, among the 46% of Westside residents who reported being charged unexpected loan or banking fees, 85% had also used one or more alternative financial services in the past year, compared to 50% of residents who had not experienced unexpected fees.

Use of alternative financial services was also higher among participants who had been charged overdraft or non-sufficient funds (NSF) fees, been denied an application to open a bank account, or experienced an involuntary bank account closure in the past year. These patterns suggest that some residents may be doubly impacted; they experienced challenges within the mainstream banking system while also relying on alternative financial services that may carry additional costs or risks.

Qualitative findings illustrate how financial pressures and the complexity of financial products can shape residents’ decisions to use alternative financial services. Participants described how life stressors can lead to making financial decisions with limited time or capacity to fully evaluate product terms. As one participant observed:

“People do it all the time, where they're stressed out, and they don't read the fine print.”

Alternative financial product use should therefore not be understood simply as a consequence of being unbanked or underbanked. Many residents have relationships with mainstream financial institutions while also using alternative products to manage credit, cash flow, or short-term needs. The issue is not whether mainstream options exist, but whether they adequately meet residents’ needs. Where they fall short, they may inadvertently push some residents toward higher-cost alternatives.

Residents’ vision for banking: transparent, inclusive, and empowering

Residents expressed a strong desire for accessible, community-based banking services and financial education that can help them build financial security. In the survey, 41% of Westside residents expressed interest in learning more about banking, credit-building, or financial coaching. Focus group participants additionally identified budgeting, understanding credit, interest rates, and credit cards as key topics of interest. One participant shared:

"Greater education on interest rates would change lives.”

Residents emphasized that financial education should extend beyond schools and financial institutions and should be embedded locally - particularly for youth. As one participant noted:

“Learning how to manage a bank account should be taught in the community and within the home. Don’t just wait for the school to teach them.”

Residents emphasized that education should be designed for people with different learning styles and accessibility needs, and that people should receive incentives for positive banking relationships and financial behaviors. Several participants highlighted social media and online videos as useful tools for learning at their own pace, while others noted that online learning can make it easier to revisit information.

Residents' descriptions of their “dream" banking services point toward a model that combines transparent and appropriate financial products with trusted human support, community-based education, accessible technology, and opportunities to build credit, savings, and wealth over time.

Limited income and financial reserves leave households exposed to financial shocks, necessitating greater financial resilience pathways.

Beyond the need for more inclusive banking, survey and focus group findings point to a deep structural driver of financial vulnerability: household economic resources. In the Westside, vulnerability is driven more by household income than by banking access or demographic characteristics alone. For many residents with little financial cushion, financial shocks can quickly become crises – highlighting the need for greater income mobility and enhanced pathways to build long-term financial resilience.

Income is the strongest predictor of financial vulnerability

Across the survey data, clear differences emerged across socioeconomic and demographic groups. As shown in Figure 7, lower-income households were disproportionately represented among Black residents, women, and those with a high school diploma/GED or less, while higher-income households were more likely to be white, male, homeowners, and/or college graduates.

Figure 7: Characteristics of Westside Residents by Household Income

Note: Percentages are calculated within each household-income bracket and exclude respondents who did not report household income. Percentages may not sum to exactly 100% because of rounding and response categories not displayed.

*Unemployed includes respondents who were out of work and looking for work and those out of work but not currently looking for work.

**Other employment status includes part-time, self-employed, student, retired, disabled/unable to work, homemaker, and other.

However, when multiple variables were compared, many of these observed differences were substantially reduced when looking at measures of financial stability. Across the analysis, income emerged as the strongest independent predictor of financial vulnerability, suggesting that differences in financial stability are driven less by demographic characteristics than by differences in the economic resources available to households. This is supported by the residents’ own view that income is their greatest obstacle to building wealth, with 52% of Westside residents identifying “low income” as their top barrier.

As shown in Figure 8, lower household incomes were strongly associated with a range of financial vulnerability indicators:

• Credit: 68% of households earning less than $25,000 self-reported having credit scores below 660, compared with 6% of those earning $75,000–$125,000.

• Savings capacity: 52% of households earning less than $25,000 reported difficulty paying bills “often” or “almost always,” compared with 12% of those earning $75,000–$125,000.

• Financial vulnerability: Only 19% of households earning less than $25,000 reported being able to afford a $500+ emergency expense, compared with 91% of those earning $75,000–$125,000.

• Financial outlook: 45% of households earning less than $25,000 reported being “somewhat” or “much” worse off financially than 12 months earlier, compared with 6% of those earning $75,000–$125,000.

Education and employment were also associated with financial outcomes, although income was a stronger and more consistent predictor. Higher education and employment were both associated with better credit and greater emergency savings – with 63% of all employed respondents reporting a credit score of 660 or above, compared with 23% of respondents who were not employed. Residents with a college degree or higher were also twice as likely to have $1,000+ in emergency savings than those without a college degree. However, once income and other socioeconomic characteristics were considered simultaneously, education and employment largely lost their independent statistical significance. This suggests that education and employment primarily operate as upstream pathways to financial stability, while household income is the more immediate factor shaping financial resilience among Westside residents.¹⁷

Figure 8: Westside Residents’ Financial Outcomes by Household Income

Note: Percentages are calculated within each income bracket and exclude respondents who did not report household income.

When compared with the larger dataset, Westside residents reported levels of educational attainment, employment, racial demographics, and credit scores similar to other survey respondents. However, they were underrepresented in higher-income groups, with only 15% of Westside residents reporting household incomes of $125,000 or more, compared with 23% of other respondents. Westside residents also reported greater reliance on public benefits, including Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, or TANF (19% vs. 10%); housing or rental assistance (17% vs. 10%); and Supplemental Security Income or Social Security Disability Insurance (9% vs. 4%). Together, these findings suggest that a greater share of Westside households are operating with limited financial margins and fewer resources to absorb income fluctuations or unexpected expenses.

Possible interventions to support income growth among Westside residents include expanding access to higher-wage career pathways, workforce training, and credentialing opportunities, such as those offered by local nonprofits like Westside Works, a local workforce development organization. Expanding guaranteed-income and other cash assistance programs – such as the “In Her Hands” initiative piloted locally by the Georgia Resilience and Opportunity Fund¹⁸ - could also provide greater financial stability, as well as helping residents access eligible public benefits and navigate the “benefits cliff” as household earnings increase. Employers can play a role as well by offering living wages and emergency assistance for workers facing short-term financial disruptions.

Building savings and financial resilience amid income constraints

Supporting income growth is particularly important to help strengthen the financial cushion residents are working to build and help them absorb unexpected expenses. For many Westside residents, building that cushion is difficult when little income remains available for savings. This is reflected in the fact that 78% of Westside residents reported having trouble paying monthly bills “sometimes,” “often,” or “almost always.” Additionally, only 19% reported being able to save regularly for non-retirement needs, while 28% were not currently saving and 54% were saving only when possible.

The qualitative findings reinforce that residents have a strong desire to save and build financial security, but high costs and limited financial margins can make it difficult to do so. Participants repeatedly described wanting to build savings and greater financial security while having little or no money left after meeting current needs:

“I would love to be able to have a savings account, but I am just not able.”

Another explained:

“At this point, I don’t even know what savings are. What are savings? I want to be able to do this, but I do not have anything left to do so.”

Residents also described financial security as more than simply having enough money to pay their bills. One participant defined it as:

“[H]aving enough funds for food or like, at least three months’ worth of savings.”

This is an emergency savings goal that few households could afford, with only 28% of Westside households able to handle an emergency expense of $1,000 or more.

As one resident described:

“It’s like trying to rub pennies together to have enough.”

These findings suggest that financial resilience in the Westside is cumulative: households with sufficient resources can more readily build reserves, while households with little financial slack may struggle to save even when they understand the importance of doing so. Rather than asking how residents can become better at budgeting, the findings raise a broader question: how can we support residents to build enough financial capacity that one unexpected expense does not trigger a cascade of financial problems?

Financial shocks can quickly become financial crises

Limited financial reserves become particularly consequential when households experience unexpected expenses or income disruptions, which were widespread among residents surveyed. In the past year, 69% of Westside residents experienced at least one significant unexpected expense, and 28% experienced three or more. As shown in Figure 9, common unexpected expenses included major out-of-pocket medical or dental expenses (reported by 30% of Westside residents), vehicle repairs or replacements (28%), computer or mobile phone repairs or replacements (27%), and house or appliance repairs (22%).

Figure 9: Common Unexpected Expenses Among Westside Residents

Note: Calculations exclude blank datapoints. Because respondents could select multiple expenses, category percentages are not expected to sum to 100%.

In focus groups and interviews, many residents expressed anxiety and fear about potential financial setbacks, sharing:

“I live paycheck to paycheck and know that anything can happen. That would be terrible”

“I just live on a prayer, but it is very stressful…fear of the future.”

"My biggest fear is, like, what if something significant happens, and I don't have the financial means.”

These concerns were further compounded by income instability. In the survey, 82% of Westside residents reported at least one significant drop in household income in the past year, including 38% due to unemployment or furlough; 30% due to a reduction in work hours; 27% due to a reduction in wages; and 21% due to a loss of government benefits. These experiences frequently overlap, as 82% of residents who experienced a significant drop in income also reported experiencing a major unexpected expense. Residents who experienced a significant drop in income were also more than three times as likely to have used at least one alternative financial service in the past year than residents who reported no significant income drop, potentially suggesting greater vulnerability to high-cost alternatives during periods of financial strain.

Importantly, this is not only an issue of consumer education. Predatory lenders profit by taking advantage of consumers in stressful financial situations who feel they have limited options. As one Westside resident explained:

“People may have an emergency, or they’re in a bind, and so, people do it all the time, where they’re stressed out, and they don’t read the fine print[…] then the people in the store just tell you any old thing.”

The result can be a cycle in which a relatively modest financial disruption leads to higher-cost debt or additional expenses, further reducing a household's ability to absorb the next shock. Breaking this cycle will require more than financial education or access to banking - it will require strategies that help residents build emergency savings and access affordable support when unexpected expenses arise. Recommended approaches include low-barrier and matched savings opportunities, community-based emergency stabilization funds, and affordable small-dollar loans that can help residents weather short-term financial shocks without turning to high-cost alternatives.

Residents need greater community support

Participants expressed a desire for greater emergency financial assistance during periods of crisis, with one resident summarizing this need simply:

“I feel like I need a safety net.”

For many residents, that safety net already includes family, friends, and community organizations that provide important support during periods of financial instability. Atlanta’s Westside is home to a range of organizations and programs offering support, but participants’ experiences suggest that these resources do not always go far enough. As one resident shared:

“I need a lot more support than what I am getting, that's for sure.”

Strengthening this existing support network - with greater resources, stronger coordination, and easier pathways to assistance - could help ensure that residents can access support when they need it most.

Taken together, these findings suggest that financial resilience should be treated as a community-level economic security issue, not simply an individual savings goal. Residents need pathways that help them increase income, stabilize cash flow, build savings, and access safe sources of emergency liquidity before a temporary disruption becomes a long-term financial crisis.

Credit and debt barriers reinforce a cycle of financial vulnerability, underscoring the need for greater access to affordable credit that can help residents manage debt and build wealth.

Credit and debt sit at the intersection of Westside residents’ financial resilience challenges. While credit can be an important tool for managing expenses, credit challenges can also push residents toward high-cost borrowing, leading to further debt and credit damage that makes it harder to access mainstream credit and accumulate wealth. Consequently, affordable credit pathways are needed to help residents avoid high-cost debt, build or repair credit, reduce existing debt burdens, and use credit as a tool for wealth-building rather than as a mechanism for managing recurring financial shortfalls.

Credit barriers can push residents toward higher-cost borrowing

Credit barriers were a significant concern among Westside residents. Among the survey respondents, 35% of Westside residents identified credit barriers as preventing them from building wealth, while 34% reported having recently been denied a loan or credit application. Credit challenges were particularly acute among residents with lower incomes, lower credit scores, and lower savings capacity, with residents with credit scores under 660 being 2.2 times as likely to report a recent loan or credit denial as those with good or better credit.

Overall, 37% of Westside residents reported using a high-interest lender because they believed a bank or credit union would not approve them. In some cases, the use of high-cost lenders was linked to not fully understanding the terms of the financing or knowing other options. Among the Westside survey respondents, 42% reported having taken a loan with an interest rate they did not fully understand; 31% reported signing loan documents they did not have time to review; and 24% reported having been encouraged to refinance or roll over a loan multiple times. As one participant shared:

“That [taking out a predatory loan] was the dumbest thing that I’ve ever done in my life. They didn’t explain that whole system to me.”

For residents who turn to high-cost lenders, the consequences extend beyond the immediate cost of borrowing. Among residents who reported using a high-cost lender, 51% had been contacted by a debt collector, 41% had experienced wage garnishment, arrest, or property seizure/threat due to debt, and 60% reported being unable to save for retirement or reducing their retirement savings.

These outcomes can contribute to a cycle of financial vulnerability in which financially-strapped residents are pushed into reliance on high-cost borrowing, particularly when facing one-time emergencies and financial shocks. In turn, high-cost debt can further impair their overall credit position, limiting opportunities to access safe and affordable loans. This creates an ongoing feedback loop that delays longer-term wealth-building and limits access to opportunities like homeownership.

Figure 10: The Cycle of Financial Vulnerability for Westside Residents

Debt stacking creates multiple layered vulnerabilities

The financial consequences of debt are compounded by carrying multiple forms of debt simultaneously. As shown in Figure 11, credit card debt was the most common form of debt reported in the prior year, affecting 42% of Westside respondents, followed by auto loans (37%), student loans (31%), and medical debt (22%). In the past year, 84% of Westside residents indicated carrying at least one type of debt, while 40% had two to three types of debt and 20% had four or more.

Figure 11: Westside Residents’ Credit & Debt Utilization

Debt stacking matters because the financial burden of debt is cumulative. While a household managing an auto payment, credit card balance, medical bill, and student loan may be able to remain current on each obligation, there is often little left over for savings, housing costs, or unexpected expenses. Debt can therefore constrain wealth-building even when it does not result in delinquency or default. This is corroborated by the fact that Westside residents who reported two or more types of debt were more than twice as likely to state that debt had prevented them from saving for retirement as desired, compared to residents with one type of debt or fewer.

Other Georgia-specific research reinforces this finding: a 2026 study of families who had exited the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program found that participants carried multiple forms of debt, including student, medical, credit card, and utility debt, with a median total debt burden of $7,000^.19 The study suggests that moving off public assistance and into employment does not necessarily translate into financial stability when households continue to carry substantial debt burdens. Together, this evidence illustrates how debt can accumulate across multiple obligations, limiting the resources households have available to build savings, withstand financial shocks, and pursue longer-term financial goals.

Different forms of debt pose unique challenges

Experiences with debt are not uniform experiences, as different types of debt are associated with different financial needs and capacities. Interventions should include focused debt management and debt reduction strategies for different types of debt, in addition to overall credit counseling.

Credit Card Debt

Credit card debt was the most common form of debt, reported by 42% of Westside residents in the past year. Credit card debt cuts across demographic lines, with no statistically significant differences in race, income, education, employment, homeownership, or gender when evaluating whether people had credit card debt. However, there were common challenges among individuals with credit card debt, who were more likely to have used a high-interest lender because they didn’t believe they could get approved elsewhere (49% vs. 27% among non-credit card debt holders), and more likely to identify credit barriers as preventing wealth-building (47% vs. 26%).

In focus groups and interviews, a theme of skepticism regarding credit cards emerged, with some participants sharing that they either had never learned to use credit cards well or had witnessed negative credit card impacts on others. As one participant stated:

“I saw what these (credit cards) did to my mom’s situation so I was never interested.”

These findings show the need for greater education on responsible use of credit cards and further study of their impacts on residents’ overall financial wellbeing. Potential strategies for credit card debt include debt management plans, in which nonprofit credit counseling agencies negotiate restructured payment plans with creditors such as credit card companies; this typically results in a single monthly payment with reduced interest and total costs.

Auto Loan Debt

Auto loan debt was the second most common form of debt, reported by 37% of Westside residents. Auto debt poses unique challenges in that vehicles are typically depreciating assets, with ongoing maintenance and repair costs and related obligations like car insurance and fuel. Indeed, 28% of Westside residents reported a significant unexpected auto-related expense within the past year, suggesting an opportunity for interventions that aid with ongoing maintenance costs. Auto loan borrowers were also more than twice as likely as non-auto loan borrowers to report that debt had caused them to reduce or stop saving for retirement, suggesting that auto debt may compete with residents’ ability to save for long-term financial goals.

Within the focus groups and interviews, participants shared challenges related to both qualifying for auto loans and obtaining auto loans at excessive rates, with one resident sharing:

“After getting an auto loan, I paid for the car three times over.”

Recent research from the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) further underscores these concerns, finding that subprime borrowers often face high-cost financing, dealer markups, unaffordable loan terms, and aggressive repossession practices. In 2025, subprime borrowers paid an average APR of roughly 20% - about twice the rate paid by prime borrowers - and CRL found that repossession can further destabilize households by threatening access to the transportation needed for work and daily life.²⁰ These findings suggest the need for targeted interventions to help residents obtain affordable auto financing, afford ongoing maintenance needs, and avoid repossession.

Student Loan Debt

Student loan debt was the third most common form of debt, with 31% of Westside residents indicating having federal and/or private student loans. This type of debt was more prevalent among residents with higher educational attainment, although student-loan borrowers had similar employment and income profiles as residents with other types of debt. Nearly half of Westside student debt borrowers had household incomes below $50,000, and they were more likely to report that debt had led to reduced retirement savings (53% vs. 29% among non-student debt holders) and delays in starting a family (26% vs. 9%). This highlights that despite their higher educational attainment, student debt holders face unique constraints on economic resources that impact long-term outcomes.

These findings are particularly relevant as federal student loan collections have resumed, with more than 2.2 million student loan borrowers nationally seeing their credit scores fall by more than 100 points since early 2025.²¹ With federal student loan policies and repayment options continuing to change, greater investment is needed in student loan counseling to help borrowers identify the repayment, forgiveness, and debt relief options for which they may qualify.²²

Medical Debt

Past due medical bills were the fourth most prevalent type of debt reported, affecting 22% of Westside residents. Personal health issues were also the top ranked stressor on household finances, affecting 29% of Westside residents, while 12% indicated healthcare costs as a barrier to wealth-building. In addition, 27% indicated skipping or delaying medical care due to debt challenges, and 30% reported a major out-of-pocket medical or dental expense in the past year – the largest category of unexpected expenses. These expenses extended to and from family members, as one focus group participant shared:

“My child has medical bills that are unmanageable.”

Health-related financial challenges were more common among Westside residents than among the broader sample. People affected by medical debt were also more likely to have lower incomes and more likely to report challenges in affording basic necessities like food and groceries. They were additionally more likely to have used a high-interest lender and experienced unexpected banking or loan fees. These findings are consistent with research from the Atlanta Regional Collaborative for Health Improvement and Undue Medical Debt, which found that medical debt contributes to financial and emotional strain, can lead people to delay medical care, and disproportionately affects people of color and other economically disadvantaged residents in Atlanta.²³

Taken together, these findings show how medical debt is an acute challenge for Westside residents facing income constraints. Potential interventions include:

• Expanding medical debt forgiveness and relief programs, such as Undue Medical Debt – which helps forgive medical debt for low-income residents - and Dollar For, which helps patients navigate hospital financial assistance and charity-care programs;

• Offering on-site financial education and debt counseling at healthcare centers;²⁴

• Providing “know your rights” education to help residents understand their options when facing medical debt and collections; and

• Supporting limitations on the use of medical debt in credit reporting.

Predatory debt and the need for enhanced consumer protections

More traditional forms of debt were, in many cases, coupled with high-cost borrowing and other predatory financial products, further increasing the financial burden on households with limited income, savings, and access to affordable credit. Some of the predatory and/or potentially harmful financial practices affecting Westside residents include:

Short-term Installment Loans and Online Loans

In the past year, 28% of Westside residents indicated using a short-term personal installment loan and/or a personal loan from an online company other than a bank. These kinds of loans provide quick access to cash but leave borrowers with payments that are often difficult to sustain, especially when used to cover recurring expenses or repay other debts. While Georgia law generally prohibits payday lending and places limits on interest rates for small-dollar loans, the state's regulatory framework leaves gaps for certain lenders and types of loans.²⁵ For instance, some online lenders use “rent-a-bank” arrangements, partnering with banks to make loans at interest rates that would otherwise exceed state limits. Expanding affordable small-dollar credit and strengthening oversight of high-cost online lending could provide safer alternatives for residents facing short-term cash flow needs.

Car Title Loans

In the past year, 15% of Westside residents reported taking out a car title loan, in which a borrower uses their vehicle title as collateral for a short-term loan. Because title lenders are regulated as pawn shops in Georgia rather than as traditional installment lenders, they can charge rates as high as 187.5% APR, leading to high costs, repeated renewals, and the threat of vehicle repossession that can trap borrowers in cycles of debt.²⁶

Westside residents who reported taking out a car title loan in the past year were more than twice as likely as other residents to have also been contacted by a debt collector and/or to have used a high-interest lender because they didn’t believe a bank or credit union would approve them. They were also more reliant on other alternative financial services, and twice as likely as other respondents to have reported that finances “often” or “almost always” controlled their lives. These risks point to the need for stronger consumer protections, greater awareness of the costs and risks of title lending, and affordable alternatives for residents who need emergency credit.

Buy Now Pay Later

In the past year, 31% of Westside residents reported using Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL), which allows consumers to make a purchase immediately and repay the cost in a series of installments, often four payments over several weeks. While BNPL can help consumers spread payments over time, most BNPL lenders do not conduct traditional ability-to-repay assessments that account for a consumer’s existing debts, income, and assets, increasing the risk of overextension through the stacking of multiple BNPL obligations.²⁷ Consequently, consumers may have difficulty meeting other financial obligations and face higher risks of overdraft fees on their bank accounts. Greater consumer education, transparency about BNPL risks and costs, and stronger accountability for BNPL providers could help reduce these risks, rather than putting the burden entirely on residents.

Payday Loan Apps

In the past year, 9% of Westside residents reported using payday loan apps, also known as Earned Wage Access (EWA). These products provide small, short-term advances that are typically repaid on the borrower's next payday, either through a linked bank account or payroll deduction. Although they are often marketed as a way for workers to access wages early and manage short-term cash-flow needs, research from CRL finds that these products can generate substantial costs and encourage repeat borrowing. In a study of Georgia payday loan app users, CRL found that half of users took out 13 or more advances per year, often stacking multiple payment apps and experiencing increased overdrafts.²⁸ These patterns suggest the need for stronger protections and greater transparency around payday loan app products, alongside affordable alternatives for workers facing short-term cash-flow gaps.

Taken together, these findings point to the need for stronger consumer protections against high-cost loans and other harmful financial practices, coupled with greater access to safe and affordable alternatives. Potential interventions include partnering with consumer protection and legal-service organizations to inform residents about their financial rights; strengthening plain language disclosures and pre-loan counseling; expanding access to affordable small-dollar loans through banks, credit unions, and community lenders; and increasing oversight and accountability for newer financial products such as BNPL and payday loan apps (EWA).

Credit avoidance can also hinder wealth-building

While credit can pose a challenge for people with limited means, it can also provide a pathway to wealth-building when offered and used responsibly. Borrowers who are debt avoidant may miss opportunities to build long-term wealth through homeownership, entrepreneurship, or other means. Across data collection, a number of residents expressed hesitancy to use credit because of negative experiences and/or fear of the unknown. As one resident shared:

“I really never learned how to use a credit card so I am wary.”

For people who have had negative experiences with banks and lenders, avoiding credit can feel safer than using it. Many residents in this study actively avoid credit. Nearly half (46%) of Westside residents had not checked their credit in the past year. However, 31% expressed interest in free credit reviews, and many of the focus group participants expressed interest in learning how to use credit safely. One participant shared:

“I would say that they should require some sort of, like... support, or training, or some type of credit card course, or something like that before they open up a credit card.”

Residents also expressed interest in lower-interest loans and products designed to help build credit, suggesting there is a need not only for credit education but for enhanced credit and credit-building products that people can understand, trust, and afford. Potential solutions include offering credit-builder loans and share-secured credit cards - which help residents establish and build credit without taking on additional debt – while offering free personalized credit coaching and helping residents correct potential errors on their credit reports.

Residents’ financial pressures vary, underscoring the need for targeted financial mobility pathways that reflect different circumstances and needs.

Rather than being monolithic, financial experiences were distinct among Westside residents from different socioeconomic groups. This section explores how gender, caregiving responsibilities, self-employment, and age shape the specific pressures residents face and the financial tools they need. These differences do not mean that separate financial systems are needed for every population; rather, financial mobility pathways should be delivered in ways that reflect residents’ unique circumstances and needs.

Women and caregivers: greater financial vulnerability and support needs

Across the survey, interviews, and focus groups, women exhibited greater levels of financial vulnerability across several measures. As shown in Figure 12, women were disproportionately represented in lower-income groups, with 32% of Westside women reporting household incomes of $25,000 or less, compared with only 8% of men. Women were also less likely to have received higher education; less likely to be homeowners; more likely to participate in public assistance programs; and more likely to be unemployed.

In turn, women reported lower emergency savings capacity, greater difficulty paying monthly bills, and weaker credit profiles than men. Women were nearly four times as likely as men to only be able to afford a $100 emergency or less, and one third reported they were worse off financially than a year ago, compared to 16% of men.

Meanwhile, men indicated their own financial vulnerabilities, with 53% reporting taxes as a major source of stress (compared to 21% of Westside women) and a larger proportion reporting homeownership-related costs like rising property insurance as a financial challenge. Together, these findings reinforce the importance of recognizing different financial pressures between men and women when designing financial support and wealth-building strategies.

Figure 12: Gender Differences in Westside Financial Characteristics

Note: For illustrative purposes, respondents identifying as another gender than male or female or preferring not to say are excluded from the chart.

In focus groups and interviews, women elaborated on some of the financial challenges they face, particularly as caregivers. They described the stress of balancing work, family responsibilities, and financial obligations, especially while operating within limited means. As one participant shared:

“I'm trying to figure out a way to budget to where I can be an active and available parent, but also, sometimes I worry if I'll ever be able to save."

Financial challenges were even more acute among single parents, one of whom shared:

“My biggest fear as a single parent is not really having support that is accessible.”

Another added:

“It is a lot more added pressure of managing finances alone.”

Caregivers also indicated a desire to teach their children about finances, with multiple participants expressing interest in youth financial education in the community.

Findings from the Westside Early Childhood Needs Assessment, published in 2018, further illustrate the challenges facing local women and caregivers. The study found that most families with children in the Westside are headed by a single parent, and that residents spend anywhere from 24% to 45% or more of their annual income on early childcare.²⁹

Our focus group participants emphasized the importance of community support in providing relief amidst these challenges, with one sharing:

“My family lives in another state so community support makes a difference in my life.”

At the same time, women demonstrated a strong interest in tools that could help strengthen their financial positions. Women in our study expressed greater interest in banking, credit-building, and financial coaching than men, and they were also substantially more likely to have checked their credit in the past year (68% vs. 44% among Westside women and men) - potentially suggesting greater engagement with personal credit improvement.

These findings suggest that Westside women have both greater financial needs and significant interest in resources that can help build financial stability. This underscores an opportunity for tailored financial mobility pathways that meet women and caregivers’ unique circumstances, such as matched savings and credit-building opportunities specific to their needs; partnerships with childcare providers to support parents financially; and financial education and programming tailored to parents, women, and youth.

Self-employed residents face income volatility and overlapping household pressures

Self-employed residents and residents with business loans represented a small but important demographic in the survey findings. Twenty-eight Westside residents reported either being self-employed or having a small business loan, with little overlap between the two categories; this suggests that many of these residents may have a business on the side or own a business while also being employed full- or part-time.

No statistically significant differences between business owners and non-business owners were identified in terms of gender, race, age, housing status, or self-reported credit score, but business owners did show distinct forms of financial vulnerability - particularly with respect to the challenge of managing overlapping household and business financial needs.

Westside business owners who’d taken out a business loan were also much more affected by debt stacking, carrying on average 4.7 different types of debt, compared with 2.1 among other Westside respondents – reflecting the distinct financing pressures and investment needs associated with running a business. Despite this, Westside business owners were found to check their credit less often, with only 36% having checked their credit in the past year compared with 58% of other respondents. This suggests that business owners may face greater debt burdens while being less engaged with personal credit monitoring, pointing to an opportunity for targeted credit-building and debt-management support.

These findings reflect the dual challenges of managing household finances while building the financial bedrock to start and run a business successfully. As one qualitative participant put it:

“I can not even start a business if I wanted to.”

Strategies to serve business owners must recognize the overlap between business and household finances. Potential interventions include integrated personal and business financial coaching, business and personal credit-building, and wealth-building tools specifically designed for business owners and entrepreneurs.

Seniors have distinct financial needs

The population of senior residents - herein defined as adults ages 55 and older - was relatively small in the survey sample, with only nine residents from English Avenue/Vine City and 24 residents overall. However, within the larger dataset emerged a picture of seniors mostly living on fixed incomes and exhibiting specific financial characteristics. Seniors both had lower incomes on average – with 75% of all seniors reporting household incomes of $50,000 or less, compared to 39% of other respondents – and less income volatility. In the past year, 57% of seniors reported one or more significant losses in income, compared to 81% of all other survey respondents. This suggests that most seniors are living with fewer resources but more predictable or fixed incomes.

The qualitative findings point to another dimension of senior financial vulnerability: financial exploitation and the difficulty of accessing appropriate services on limited incomes. One senior participant described, for example, the distress of experiencing unexpected banking fees:

“I felt a huge amount of stress when my money was taken out of my account. It is not right that someone would take a senior’s money knowing they already don’t have much.”

To help meet their needs, seniors we spoke with called for greater education and protection against financial exploitation; targeted mortgage products for residents on fixed incomes; and on-site banking support in senior living communities where a representative can help residents address banking needs directly. For seniors, financial inclusion depends as much on affordability, accessibility, and trusted delivery as on the availability of financial products themselves.

Tailor delivery, not just products

These differences do not necessarily call for a separate financial product for every population. Instead, they suggest that the same financial mobility infrastructure may need to be delivered differently depending on residents’ circumstances. A caregiver may need emergency savings assistance paired with child-care support; a small-business owner may need help integrating business and household finances; a senior may need education on financial scams and protection from financial exploitation; and all three may need these services delivered on-site where they live, work, worship, or otherwise gather. What residents need is not necessarily more products, but more accessible and flexible pathways to the right combination of products, services, and support for their circumstances.

Housing is both a source of financial strain and a pathway to wealth, necessitating stronger housing stability and wealth pathways.

Housing costs are a major financial stressor for Westside residents, affecting renters and homeowners in different ways. Rising housing costs can create displacement pressures that undermine household and community wealth. Despite these challenges, residents expressed strong aspirations for homeownership and the greater financial security it can provide, pointing to opportunities to strengthen pathways to affordable homeownership, preserve existing homeowners’ assets, and expand wealth-building opportunities.

Housing costs strain renters and homeowners alike

Housing sits at the center of many of the financial challenges experienced by Westside residents. Nearly two-thirds of Westside residents (65%) identified housing as one of their top three sources of financial stress - the most cited financial obligation.

For many households, housing costs exceed the commonly used threshold for housing cost burden, which defines spending more than 30% of household income on housing as cost-burdened. According to the latest U.S. Census data, 42% of English Avenue/Vine City residents are housing cost-burdened, including 48% of renters and 20-29% of homeowners. As seen in Figure 13, this is reflected in the survey data: Among Westside households that reported their annual household incomes, 45% reported incomes below $50,000, while 60% reported monthly rent or mortgage costs above $1,250 - the maximum monthly housing cost that would keep a household earning $50,000 at or below the 30% threshold.

Figure 13: Monthly Housing Costs Among Westside Households

Note: Household incomes and housing costs are self-reported. Percentages exclude respondents who selected “Prefer not to answer” for household income or monthly rent/mortgage costs.

High housing cost burdens challenge residents in numerous ways:

• Household budgeting: 27% of Westside residents reported that their housing expenses were “difficult” or “very difficult” to manage.

• Emergency resilience: Only 48% of residents who identified housing as a major stressor could handle $500 or more in an emergency, compared with 63% of residents who did not identify housing as a financial stressor.

• Financial outlook: Residents who identified housing as a major stressor were nearly twice as likely to report being worse off financially than a year ago, compared to those who did not (29% vs. 15%).

• Wealth-building opportunities: 38% of Westside residents identified housing costs as one of their top three barriers to building wealth.

In the focus groups, residents shared challenges in securing housing that is both affordable and comfortable, and in being able to afford relocation costs when it is not:

“I’m paying to live somewhere where I’m not even comfortable. But it’s an expense to move. That’s very stressful within itself.”

Housing burdens were particularly acute for renters, though homeowners shared their own distinct housing-related challenges. Among renters, 67% identified keeping up with rent increases as a financial challenge, while 58% cited utility bills. For homeowners, the primary concerns were rising property taxes or insurance (76%), necessary home repairs (63%), and monthly cash flow (56%). These differences point to distinct forms of housing-related financial strain: renters are primarily trying to maintain housing stability as recurring costs rise, while homeowners are trying to maintain an asset while absorbing the ongoing costs of ownership.

These findings point to the need to treat housing stability and wealth-building as connected issues. Reducing housing cost burdens, helping residents achieve sustainable homeownership, and helping existing homeowners preserve their assets are all part of strengthening financial mobility. Potential interventions include preserving and expanding deeply affordable housing, providing short-term housing assistance, strengthening tenant protections, and expanding pathways to sustainable homeownership and wealth preservation.

Housing, displacement, and loss of community wealth

Across focus groups and interviews, Westside residents expressed concern that rising housing and living costs could risk displacing existing residents. Several participants expressed frustration about wealthier newcomers purchasing property and driving up costs while longtime residents struggle to keep pace. As one resident put it:

“Atlanta was a best kept secret until it became popular. Now, we who have been in Atlanta cannot afford the new Atlanta.”

Others summarized the concern more simply, saying:

“The cost of living is out of hand.”

These concerns were also tied to major investments and events in Atlanta. Reflecting on Atlanta’s hosting of several 2026 FIFA World Cup games, one participant said:

“Things happening here like the World Cup seem great, but [it] has a bad impact on us because it will make living in the area more expensive.”

For Westside residents, displacement can represent more than the loss of an affordable place to live. It can mean losing social networks, community connections, and neighborhood stability. Rising rents can leave renters with less income available for savings and debt repayment, while rising property taxes, insurance, and repair costs can place pressure on homeowners to sell assets that might otherwise provide long-term and intergenerational wealth.

Housing affordability is therefore not simply a housing policy issue; it is a community financial mobility issue. The qualitative findings show that residents want investment and neighborhood improvement, but they also want to benefit from those investments. Ensuring that residents can remain in the community, build assets, and benefit from local investments is an important part of making housing a pathway to broader economic mobility. This requires giving residents a meaningful role in shaping investment priorities and assessing whether neighborhood investments are delivering the benefits they seek.

Aspiring homeowners face limitations

Homeownership is one of the most important pathways to building wealth but remains out of reach for many - especially households with lower incomes and households of color, who have long faced systemic inequalities in homeownership access and achievement.³⁰ This squares with the experiences of Atlanta’s Westside residents, only 34% of whom reported being homeowners, compared to 44% of other respondents. Among Westside renters, 98% aspire to homeownership but less than half (49%) feel they are on track to achieve it (see Figure 14). Black and white residents express similarly high aspirations for homeownership, but Black residents are less likely to feel that they were on track to achieve it. Younger residents are also less likely to feel on track than older residents.

Figure 14: Homeownership Aspiration Among Westside Renters

These findings are consistent with similar insights from Ambition Without Access, a recent report from CRL’s Julian Bond Institute which found that younger households and households of color demonstrate strong aspirations for homeownership and wealth building but often face greater barriers.³¹ This combination - lower current homeownership but relatively high optimism about future ownership -suggests an important opportunity for intervention. Residents are seeking pathways to become mortgage-ready, navigate barriers to home purchasing, and sustain ownership when they get there.

Among Westside renters, the most reported barriers to homeownership included low credit scores, cited by 57% of residents; not enough savings for a down payment (49%); interest rates being too high (38%); inability to qualify for a mortgage (23%) and inability to find an affordable home (18%).

In the qualitative data, residents' experiences reinforce the importance of community-based support to help overcome these barriers. As one participant shared:

“If it were not for local support, I would not have been able to buy a home.”

These findings highlight an important point: homeownership barriers are often financial resilience and credit barriers in disguise. A household may be ready and willing to buy a home but lack the savings, credit profile, manageable debt burden, or monthly cash flow necessary to qualify for an affordable mortgage. Homeownership interventions should therefore create a coordinated pathway that includes credit building, debt and cash-flow management, and savings accumulation prior to assessing mortgage readiness. Additional strategies include expanding flexible mortgage options and pairing down payment assistance with matched savings, closing-cost assistance, and debt relief.

Wealth preservation needs among legacy residents and homeowners

Survey data provide strong evidence that homeownership is associated with greater financial resilience, but also that existing homeowners need help preserving the assets they have gained. Among Westside residents, 56% of homeowners could handle an emergency of $1,000 or more, compared with just 18% of renters, while 64% of homeowners reported having money left over at the end of the month “often” or “almost always,” compared with just 10% of renters.

However, this does not mean that homeownership itself offers financial stability. In fact, the data show that homeownership alone does not eliminate housing-related financial hardship; rather, homeownership can be both an asset-building mechanism and a source of financial exposure. This is supported by the fact that 31% of Westside homeowners reported that their monthly housing-related expenses were “difficult” or “very difficult” to manage, with most reporting that their homeowner’s insurance, utilities, property taxes, and mortgage payments had increased substantially in the past two years. Additionally, Westside homeowners cited keeping up with rising taxes or insurance, paying for necessary home repairs, and managing monthly cash flow among their biggest financial concerns as homeowners (see Figure 15).

Figure 15: Westside Homeowners’ Top Financial Challenges

These challenges are particularly acute among long-time residents, who were much more likely to own their homes than newer residents. Of the Westside residents who’d lived in their neighborhood for more than 10 years (hereafter referred to as “legacy residents”), 62% were homeowners, compared with just 13% of residents who had lived in the neighborhood for 10 years or fewer. They were also more likely to work full-time, have higher educational attainment, and have money left over at the end of the month than newer residents (43% vs. 16%).

However, legacy residents were not immune to financial stress. Fifty-five percent of legacy residents reported that finances controlled their lives “often” or “almost always,” compared with 35% of newer residents. Legacy residents were also more likely to report using a high-interest lender because they believed a bank or credit union would not approve them (50% vs. 28%) and experience unexpected banking or loan fees (58% vs. 37%). Legacy residents also had on average 2.7 types of debt compared to 1.8 among newer residents.

Additionally, legacy residents who are homeowners face distinct challenges in transferring wealth to the next generation. In the survey, 22% of Westside homeowners reported problems inheriting or transferring family property or land because of unclear ownership, and less than half reported having a will or estate plan, creating a potential barrier to preserving home equity and transferring wealth across generations. These findings highlight the importance of addressing not only whether residents own homes, but whether they have the legal, financial, and physical resources needed to keep those homes, preserve their equity, and transfer them successfully.

Taken together, the varying needs among existing and aspiring homeowners point to two complementary housing pathways:

Figure 16: Pathways to Wealth through Homeownership

For aspiring homeowners:

For existing homeowners:

Both pathways are necessary if homeownership is to function as a sustainable pathway to community wealth. For legacy homeowners in particular, financial mobility strategies should extend beyond home acquisition to include affordable home repairs, property tax and insurance assistance, foreclosure prevention, estate planning, heirs’ property and title assistance, and tools that help residents preserve and responsibly transfer home equity.

Beyond homeownership: Other ways to build wealth

Wealth-building opportunities beyond homeownership appear limited for many Westside residents. Only 29% of Westside residents said they currently have opportunities to build long-term wealth, while 60% said they did not and another 11% were unsure. Access to wealth-building opportunities is particularly limited among households earning $25,000 or less, 19% of whom reported feeling that they currently have opportunities to build wealth.

Access to common wealth-building vehicles was limited, with only 17% of Westside survey participants reporting having an employer-provided or individual retirement account, compared with 60% of U.S. adults.³² As shown in Figure 17, ownership of investment accounts varied substantially by income, race, and housing tenure, with Black residents, renters, and lower-income households less likely to hold retirement and other investment accounts. These patterns reinforce the broader finding that access to wealth-building opportunities is closely tied to residents’ existing economic resources and assets, highlighting an opportunity to expand low-barrier pathways to wealth-building for residents who have historically faced exclusion.

Figure 17: Westside Residents’ Retirement Savings & Investments

* Employer-provided retirement account or individual retirement account.

** Held outside of retirement accounts.

***529 accounts are tax-advantaged savings accounts designed primarily to help families pay for qualified education expenses.

In focus groups and interviews, residents expressed frustration about limited wealth-building opportunities for much of the community, with one resident observing the following, which points to broader concerns about growing wealth divides:

“We’re just seeing what we always see, the rich getting richer.”

Participants expressed a desire for solutions that support generational wealth accumulation, such as investment opportunities and savings plans that can be passed down to children. Many also expressed a need for assistance with long-term financial planning, including retirement savings and investment strategies.

The opportunity is therefore not simply to provide more financial education about investing, but to make wealth-building vehicles more accessible, affordable, and automatic. Potential strategies include:

• Retirement savings: Promote automatic retirement savings through employers, payroll contributions, and matching opportunities.

• Investment access and education: Pair low-barrier, low-fee investment products with plain language financial education to broaden participation among residents who have historically had fewer opportunities to access these tools.

• Youth and family asset-building: Expand opportunities for baby bonds, 529 accounts, 530A accounts, Individual Development Accounts (IDAs), and other child and youth savings or investment accounts to create assets that are not dependent solely on parents’ ability to save.³³

• Seed and match long-term investments: Use employer, philanthropic, and public partnerships to provide initial deposits, matching contributions, or other incentives that help residents begin investing even when they have limited resources to contribute independently.

This approach would complement, not replace, homeownership as a wealth-building strategy. For residents who cannot or do not yet want to purchase a home, accessible retirement, investment, and child asset-building accounts can provide additional pathways to accumulate and transfer wealth over time. These also create opportunities for residents who already own homes to diversify their assets and build financial security beyond housing wealth.