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22 THE FINANCIAL WELL BEING OF MILITARY SERVICEMEMBERS According to the Department of Defense's (DoD) Annual Report on financial literacy and preparedness, military servicemembers show slightly higher levels of economic well- being compared to the general population. e report was released by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), which created a test to measure financial well-being. Scores range from 0-100, with a higher score correlating to higher levels of financial well- being. e average score was 61 for a servicemember on active duty and 60 for reserve members. e general population had the lowest share of higher scores at just 36%. Fifty percent of active servicemembers and 45% of reserve members scored higher than 61. e average rating for the general population was 54. e general population had the most individual scores in the bottom tier at 13%. Only 10% of servicemembers combined had scores lower than 10. "e higher levels of financial well-being exhibited by servicemembers may be explained by certain characteristics and benefits of military service," the report states. "For example, the CFPB found in its research that U.S. adults with a stable month-to-month income had a higher score (56) than those whose income varies from month-to-month (50). Individuals with employer-provided health benefits had a higher score (56) than those without (51)." Of course, this report does not imply that servicemembers do not have financial challenges. According to the survey, about one-third of servicemembers have less than one month of emergency savings, and 23% of junior enlisted servicemembers had no emergency funds. e CFPB recently started its "Start Small, Save Up" initiative, after research found 40% of Americans could not cover a $400 emergency expense. A 2018 National Association of Realtors Research Group report entitled "Veterans & Active Military Home Buyers Profile" found that active-duty military makes up 2% of all American homebuyers, with veterans accounting for 17%, and 81% non-military. e report also found that, while active-duty military homebuyers do have a lower median income than non-military buyers at $84,000, they have other advantages, including stable job security and no-down-payment financing options. A full 56% of active-duty homebuyers put no money down when purchasing a home, and 41% of veterans. For comparison's sake, only 7% of non-military buyers can make use of no-down-payment financing options. Among active-duty military who financed their home, 77% used a VA loan, and 15% used a conventional loan. For veterans, 58% used a VA loan and 33% used a conventional loan. Overall financial well being has been a topic of discussion in recent weeks after April's job's report showed the lowest unemployment rate (3.6%) since 1969. According to the Department of Defense's (DoD) Annual Report on financial literacy and preparedness, military servicemembers show slightly higher levels of economic well-being compared to the general population.