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Thursday, July 10, 2014

IT’S NOT JUST AN INCOME GAP

The richest 5% of Americans had 24 times the wealth of the median household in 2013, up from 16.5% as much in 2007, according to University of Michigan researchers. Middle-class Americans, whose wealth most likely is tied to home ownership, remain further behind the most affluent—18.8% of homeowners in the first quarter of 2014 were underwater on their mortgage. The University of Michigan study suggests that when people feel wealthier, they are more likely to spend money, and that many Americans may be restricting their spending because they still feel poorer than they were before the recession. Loss during the recession was not equally distributed; the 5% saw their net worth fall 16% from 2007 through last year, while median households’ net worth dropped by 43%.

 
Source: AP, 6/24/14, Wealth Gap

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