Federal Reserve to contact 10,000 families about finances

AP
WASHINGTON — Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke wants to discover key facts about the personal finances of thousands of Americans, and he is promising that the information will be held in strict confidence.

The Fed sent out letters this week from Bernanke to approximately 10,000 families living in 79 cities and towns around the country asking them to participate in the central bank's latest "Survey of Consumer Finances."

The survey, which has been done once every three years since 1983, provides detailed information for the central bank and other economic researchers into household finances.

"The results of the survey will fill a gap in our knowledge about the financial circumstances of different types of households," Bernanke wrote in a letter encouraging people to participate.

The data collected will give a representative picture of what Americans own, from houses and cars to stocks and bonds, to how much they borrow and where they borrow the money.