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 ...
Rich liberals are doing well though, so that’s all that really matters.
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
From the stupid article:
“the median wealth of a U.S. household dropped 36% from 2003 to 2013”.
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.
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! ;)
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.”
Entitlement Army to provide the votes
Crony capitalists to provide the dough.
It’s the Democrat formula.
Sorry, forgot the link to the original paper:
http://web.stanford.edu/group/scspi/_media/working_papers/pfeffer-danziger-schoeni_wealth-levels.pdf
More class warfare? Grab your bootstraps and start pulling if you’re not where you want to be.
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).
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.
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.
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.
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. :)
--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!
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