Building Savings for Success: Early Impacts from the Assets for Independence Program Randomized Evaluation

Assets for Independence (AFI) helps provide families with individual development accounts (IDAs) that allow them to save by matching their personal savings for specific investments, such as buying a home or enrolling in higher education and training programs. The Urban Institute evaluated two Assets for Independence (AFI) program sites, Albuquerque and Los Angeles. This report presents findings that show that AFI produced a seven percentage point increase in the share of participants with liquid assets, and a $799 mean increase in liquid assets.