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Household Wealth Is the Highest Ever; Probably Not Your Household’s, Though...
Money Magazine ^ | March 13, 2015 | Kerri Anne Renzulli

Posted on 03/15/2015 12:53:35 PM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin

American households now have a total net worth of $83 trillion, but most families are still behind where they were in 2007.

Americans’ total wealth has reached a record. According to a Federal Reserve report released Thursday, the net worth of U.S. households and nonprofit organizations rose to $82.9 trillion at the end of 2014.

Much of that growth was driven by stocks, which grew in value by $742 billion during the final quarter of last year. The value of residential real estate also rose by $356 billion.

However, these aggregate numbers from the Fed provide only a partial view of Americans’ financial well-being. Since wealth is spread unevenly, so is the effect of gains in asset value. The median household—the one that’s richer than about half of households, but poorer than the other half—is likely still well behind where it was before the financial crisis.

The most recent solid data on this runs through 2013. As MONEY recently reported, an analysis by researchers at the University of Michigan last year found that the median wealth of a U.S. household, in inflation-adjusted dollars, dropped 36% from 2003 to 2013. In that same period, the richest 5% of households saw their median net worth increase by 12%.

In 2003, the wealthiest 5% of Americans had a net worth 13 times that of the median household. By 2013, that disparity had nearly doubled, with these households holding 24 times that of the median.

The main reason for this increasing wealth gap: not only do the rich have more assets, but they have more of the assets that have performed better. More than half of a typical household’s wealth is in real estate. But a median household in the top 5% keeps only 16% of wealth in home equity.

(Excerpt) Read more at time.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Culture/Society; Government
KEYWORDS: householdwealth; medianwealth; middleclass; stockmarket; waronmiddleclass

1 posted on 03/15/2015 12:53:35 PM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin
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To: Diana in Wisconsin

Rich liberals are doing well though, so that’s all that really matters.


2 posted on 03/15/2015 12:55:41 PM PDT by Bubba_Leroy (The Obamanation Continues)
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To: Diana in Wisconsin

This kid is doing okay:

Atheist Making A Fortune From Selling Bibles Says The Money Is Too Good To Be True
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/3268031/posts


3 posted on 03/15/2015 1:01:00 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet (The question isn't who is going to let me; it's who is going to stop me.)
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To: Diana in Wisconsin
More Good Economic News From Obamaland


4 posted on 03/15/2015 1:07:02 PM PDT by Iron Munro
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To: Diana in Wisconsin
So long s the Fed keeps printing money, the prices of stocks will go up, and the "rich" will appear "richer." However, that's just another form of leverage. When the value of the dollar collapses, so will the stocks.
5 posted on 03/15/2015 1:08:32 PM PDT by JoeFromSidney (Book RESISTANCE TO TYRANNY, available from Amazon.)
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To: Diana in Wisconsin

From the stupid article:
“the median wealth of a U.S. household dropped 36% from 2003 to 2013”.


6 posted on 03/15/2015 1:20:10 PM PDT by Repeal The 17th (We have met the enemy, and he is us.)
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To: Diana in Wisconsin
Heavy Hitters: Top All-Time Donors, 1989-2014
http://www.opensecrets.org/orgs/list.php
American Fedn of State, County & Municipal Employees $60,949,129 [Democrat] 81% [Republican] 1%”

Leviathan (Uncle Sam employs more people than you think)
National Review ^ | 02/03/2011 | Iain Murray
"...nearly 40 million Americans employed in some way by government."

Meanwhile, their are about 93 million people out of work, because work has been outlawed in many ways (regulations against private property rights and new, small manufacturing shops. We're too classy with "property values" for our real means (agriculture, energy, new blood to replenish manufacturing).


7 posted on 03/15/2015 1:21:32 PM PDT by familyop (We Baby Boomers are croaking in an avalanche of corruption smelled around the planet.)
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To: Diana in Wisconsin
Few people have any idea what wealth is. It is NOT money or income.

EX: You and I can both make the same salary. You take it and save and buy a house, and build a stock portfolio, and purchase some valuable paintings. I rent a the similar home next to yours, I buy really nice stereo equipment, many pairs of Jordans, an awesome entertainment center with huge flatscreen and all the best gaming systems, and eat ribs and steaks and drink better than average wines.

You have a decent supply of wealth. I have NONE. We have the same salary, and live in similar homes.

8 posted on 03/15/2015 1:23:22 PM PDT by Teacher317 (We have now sunk to a depth at which restatement of the obvious is the first duty of intelligent men)
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To: Teacher317

An excellent analysis!

I DO have all of the wealth-building items you mentioned, but none of the ‘luxuries’ that you listed.

Can I still come over and play at your house? I need a FUN, cash-poor friend. I’ll even bring my own wine glass! ;)


9 posted on 03/15/2015 1:36:43 PM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin (I don't have 'Hobbies.' I'm developing a robust Post-Apocalyptic skill set...)
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To: Repeal The 17th

From the source for the article:

“In dollars terms, the median wealth of a US household was $87,992 in 2003, and by 2013 had decreased 36% to $56,335. In contrast, the richest 10% actually saw their net worth increase from 2003 to 2013, with the highest gains going to the top 5%. The median wealth of the households in the top five percent grew over 12% during the same time period, from $1,192,639 to $1,364,834.”


10 posted on 03/15/2015 2:12:27 PM PDT by VanShuyten ("a shadow...draped nobly in the folds of a gorgeous eloquence.")
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To: VanShuyten

Entitlement Army to provide the votes
Crony capitalists to provide the dough.
It’s the Democrat formula.


11 posted on 03/15/2015 2:20:14 PM PDT by nascarnation (Impeach, convict, deport)
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To: VanShuyten

Sorry, forgot the link to the original paper:

http://web.stanford.edu/group/scspi/_media/working_papers/pfeffer-danziger-schoeni_wealth-levels.pdf


12 posted on 03/15/2015 2:26:34 PM PDT by VanShuyten ("a shadow...draped nobly in the folds of a gorgeous eloquence.")
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To: Diana in Wisconsin

More class warfare? Grab your bootstraps and start pulling if you’re not where you want to be.


13 posted on 03/15/2015 2:30:51 PM PDT by Wolfie
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To: VanShuyten
The median wealth of the households in the top five percent...

Does she mean the wealth of approximately the 97.5th percentile? Or does she mean the mean wealth of the top 5%.

It seems the author has at best a median understanding of statistics (i.e. half the population understands them better than she does).

14 posted on 03/15/2015 3:02:46 PM PDT by seowulf (Cogito cogito, ergo cogito sum. Cogito.---Ambrose Bierce)
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To: Teacher317

Great example. I see it all the time in my neighborhood. The people appear wealthy to those around them because that it what they want to project - conspicuous consumption.

If they man lost his high paying job, though, the family would go down hill fast. They’d not be able to cover the nanny, the housekeeper, the yard work crew, the new (fill-in-the-blank) automobile every year, replacement iphones every time one of the kids sits on theirs or drops it while playing catch with it (no, seriously), the nitrogen cooled custom gaming system to make all the other kids at school green with envy, the ivy league tuition - fraternity/sorority housing - flashy red mustang to get the coddled offspring set up, country club membership, salon trips and boutique fashion and cosmetics purchases for the trophy wife, European vacations... The list goes on and on.

This is not an old money neighborhood. Most are personally funding it all and I marvel that they can afford it even on the executive salary. They simply can’t be saving with all of that cash going out. But they look marvelous and that is, apparently, as essential as breathing.


15 posted on 03/15/2015 3:21:56 PM PDT by mom of young patriots
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To: Diana in Wisconsin
...aggregate numbers from the Fed provide only a partial view of Americans’ financial well-being. Since wealth is spread unevenly, so is the effect of gains in asset value. The median household...

The folks at Money Magazine may really like this whole income inequality song and dance, but it's completely unnecessary when showing why we're poorer now than before.  All they needed was to remember inflation and population.  Total dollar wealth is in fact at an all time high and that's because dollars are a lot easier to come by now and also because there are a lot more people that have 'em. 

However the average American has less money now than he did eight years ago after adjusting for inflation.  Not only nothing to show for eight years of work but poorer.  

16 posted on 03/15/2015 3:26:19 PM PDT by expat_panama
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To: Wolfie
I agree. Building wealth is not rocket science. It can basically be boiled down to the following statement:

Live below your means and invest the difference

That's all there is to it. No need to read a stack of self-help books and no need to hire a financial planner.

17 posted on 03/15/2015 3:33:16 PM PDT by SamAdams76
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To: expat_panama

I know. These ‘news’ articles always generate a lot of interesting discussions, though! ;)

As for me and my house? Doesn’t matter WHO is currently at the helm trying to destroy our country - GOP-e or ‘Rat. I’ve been gaining and thriving and investing and divesting since I was a teenager playing the Commodities Market - with a stubby pencil, a newspaper and a phone that was actually ATTACHED to the wall! Oh, My! Am I that O-L-D all of a sudden? LOL!

If you have the right pieces in place, you can pretty much weather any storm Mother Government ‘creates’ out of thin air. ;)

I learned a LOT from my SUCCESSFUL Depression-Era Grandparents who worked ANY and all jobs to get by in those days and always had cash at hand to buy up land, and homes FILLED with ‘antiques’...many of which still reside with me! And then there was the other ‘teaching tool’ side or the family; a bunch of drunken bums. Loveable drunks, mind you; just dumb about cash flow, investing, delayed gratification, etc.

Everyone serves as an example to you in life, for good or ill. It is what it is. :)


18 posted on 03/15/2015 4:09:41 PM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin (I don't have 'Hobbies.' I'm developing a robust Post-Apocalyptic skill set...)
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To: Diana in Wisconsin
I know. These ‘news’ articles always generate a lot of interesting discussions, though! ;)

--and for that I do thank you.  Thing is that no matter how goofy the article there will always be those who argue for them.  Can't buy entertainment like this!

19 posted on 03/15/2015 6:24:06 PM PDT by expat_panama
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