28 percent of Americans have no emergency savings: Bankrate survey

Nearly half of Americans don't have enough money saved up to cover three months of expenses, and 28 percent haven't saved a penny for emergencies, a new survey shows.

The Bankrate report recommends Americans have enough money in savings to cover six months of lost wages. Only 24 percent of the nation meets that goal, CBS News reported.

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Another 49 percent don't have enough money saved to cover three months of expenses. And 28 percent have no cushion whatsoever — up from 24 percent last year, according to the report, which is based on a survey of 1,000 adults, according to CNN.

"The majority of Americans still have much work to do in building an adequate emergency savings cushion," Greg McBride, Bankrate's senior financial analyst, told CBS News.

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The results are better than in 2006, when Bankrate found that 61 percent of Americans didn't have enough emergency savings to last three months, according to CNN.

And, overall, Americans' financial situation is positive, with 24 percent of those surveyed reporting a better overall financial situation compared to one year ago, the Chicago Tribune reported.

Fewer Americans are feeling bad about their savings. Currently, 32 percent of those surveyed said they are "less comfortable with their savings," compared with 47 percent one year ago, according to the Tribune.