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Surprising Net Worth Number
06-27-2007, 07:58 AM
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#1
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Jul 2004
Posts: 1,321
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Surprising Net Worth Number
Jonathan Clements has an article in today WSJ with the following statistic:
Don't get me wrong: I am not claiming $1 million isn't a huge sum.
Indeed, it's beyond the wildest dreams of most Americans. Take households headed by someone 55 to 64 years old, which is America's wealthiest age group. Even for these folks, who are on the cusp of retirement, the median household net worth -- including home equity -- is under $250,000, according to the Federal Reserve's 2004 Survey of Consumer Finances.
No wonder we retirees are in the minority!
Grumpy
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06-27-2007, 08:06 AM
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#2
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Houston
Posts: 2,155
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Yeah, but 1MM net worth (at age 55 - 64) is most likely laughable on this board.
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06-27-2007, 08:07 AM
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#3
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Losing my whump
Posts: 22,708
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Last time I looked at the numbers it was worse than that...there werent many people in "the median". Lots of people with under $25k and a bunch with a lot of money.
Seems you either "get it" or you dont.
__________________
Be fearful when others are greedy, and greedy when others are fearful. Just another form of "buy low, sell high" for those who have trouble with things. This rule is not universal. Do not buy a 1973 Pinto because everyone else is afraid of it.
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06-27-2007, 08:16 AM
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#4
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Feb 2004
Posts: 81
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Quote:
Originally Posted by grumpy
Jonathan Clements has an article in today WSJ with the following statistic:
Don't get me wrong: I am not claiming $1 million isn't a huge sum.
Indeed, it's beyond the wildest dreams of most Americans. Take households headed by someone 55 to 64 years old, which is America's wealthiest age group. Even for these folks, who are on the cusp of retirement, the median household net worth -- including home equity -- is under $250,000, according to the Federal Reserve's 2004 Survey of Consumer Finances.
No wonder we retirees are in the minority!
Grumpy
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I wonder what the net worth number would be without home equity. Me thinks that once home equity is factored out, it gets really scary.
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06-27-2007, 08:27 AM
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#5
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: Hooverville
Posts: 22,983
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Likely this does not include defined benefit pensions. Plenty of people in this age group are doing fine- they buy $400,000 to million $+ homes. What pays the mortgage is mostly pensions. A surprising number of them are government pensions.
Ha
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06-27-2007, 08:31 AM
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#6
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Losing my whump
Posts: 22,708
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Except for the very lowest income levels, where home equity is zero or close to it, it ranges from 30-60%.
For a pretty large segment of the population, building home equity as a store of value as a forced savings plan IS their retirement plan. I guess it helps that shelter is a necessary expense in the first place.
__________________
Be fearful when others are greedy, and greedy when others are fearful. Just another form of "buy low, sell high" for those who have trouble with things. This rule is not universal. Do not buy a 1973 Pinto because everyone else is afraid of it.
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06-27-2007, 09:32 AM
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#7
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 4,391
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Well if we elect Hilary then you can share more of your prosperity. She has made quite the stump speech lately talking about shared prosperity and how we are all in this together.
Quoting her...
“Fairness doesn’t just happen. It requires the right government policies.”
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06-27-2007, 09:37 AM
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#8
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Moderator Emeritus
Join Date: Dec 2005
Posts: 10,125
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I saw this article on why you need $500 in the bank. I guess that we really are in the minority.
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06-27-2007, 10:00 AM
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#9
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Lawn chair in Texas
Posts: 14,183
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__________________
Have Funds, Will Retire
...not doing anything of true substance...
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06-27-2007, 10:48 AM
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#10
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Oct 2003
Posts: 5,105
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Sam
Yeah, but 1MM net worth (at age 55 - 64) is most likely laughable on this board.
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I agree and from what I see in the USA the numbers quoted don't seem right to me.
HaHa also has a great point.
A couple of other things to remember. Most journalist don't know how to do financial analysis and the article needs a fear factor to get any interest.
I would really like to see an article that attempts to point out all the wealth in this country.
__________________
Sometimes death is not as tragic as not knowing how to live. This man knew how to live--and how to make others glad they were living. - Jack Benny at Nat King Cole's funeral
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06-27-2007, 11:04 AM
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#11
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Feb 2006
Posts: 3,895
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not meant as a personal attack but just to add some humility to this thread: some people are forced into debt through no fault of their own while others never had the luck or the mental capacity to accumulate much wealth so i wouldn't be so quick to laugh, and certainly not at a million bucks.
__________________
"off with their heads"~~dr. joseph-ignace guillotin
"life should begin with age and its privileges and accumulations, and end with youth and its capacity to splendidly enjoy such advantages."~~mark twain - letter to edward kimmitt 1901
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06-27-2007, 11:46 AM
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#12
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 2,450
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I heard that the GAO had its own study and showed people were doing better than these articles point out....Also, I think what is missed in these is that folks with a lower income rate will simply have a decent amount of social security replace their income....if you make and live off of 20k while working, social security isnt bad...
Also, this discussion is similar to all of the threads "Can I retire on 1 million"....some here would scoff at the idea of living on 30-40k/yr while others would consider it pretty damn good...
__________________
- Hurry! to the cliffs of insanity!
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06-27-2007, 02:21 PM
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#13
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Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Join Date: Jun 2006
Location: Central, Ohio, USA
Posts: 2,635
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I could live on $80K a year but choose to live on no more than $30K a year. So I guess I would be classified as VERY LOW INCOME. When are these journalists ever going to get the FACT that it is EXPENSES that drive the train NOT INCOME.
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Vietnam Veteran, CW4 USA, Retired 1979
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06-27-2007, 04:33 PM
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#14
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: Hooverville
Posts: 22,983
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Quote:
Originally Posted by R Wood
I could live on $80K a year but choose to live on no more than $30K a year. So I guess I would be classified as VERY LOW INCOME. When are these journalists ever going to get the FACT that it is EXPENSES that drive the train NOT INCOME.
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Print journalists aren’t stupid. A financial journalist is like a health writer, she must write to her audience. That audience has a short attention span, and at best they are reading to confirm whatever bias they already have in place, or stoke a lingering fear, or whatever. What they are not doing is trying to understand unfamiliar concepts.
Ha
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06-27-2007, 04:38 PM
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#15
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Moderator Emeritus
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: minnesota
Posts: 13,228
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Clements writes for the WSJ. I'll bet many readers have a high income but not big savings. Saying a million dollars ain't what it used to be is relevant to that audience, who may expect to spend $100,000 a year.
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No more lawyer stuff, no more political stuff, so no more CYA
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06-27-2007, 04:59 PM
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#16
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gone traveling
Join Date: Nov 2005
Posts: 2,146
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But if you and your wife worked for 30+ years and will both be gettin SS of about 25K combined would that not average about 1 million with the 250 average?
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06-27-2007, 06:40 PM
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#17
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Sep 2006
Posts: 372
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MasterBlaster
Well if we elect Hilary then you can share more of your prosperity. She has made quite the stump speech lately talking about shared prosperity and how we are all in this together.
Quoting her...
“Fairness doesn’t just happen. It requires the right government policies.”
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The Goddess of Fairness speaks. Do you really need to know anything more about Hillary?
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06-27-2007, 06:55 PM
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#18
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Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Losing my whump
Posts: 22,708
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hey ha...sounds like hairballs!
Hillary?
__________________
Be fearful when others are greedy, and greedy when others are fearful. Just another form of "buy low, sell high" for those who have trouble with things. This rule is not universal. Do not buy a 1973 Pinto because everyone else is afraid of it.
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06-27-2007, 07:13 PM
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#19
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Sep 2006
Posts: 372
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Tried to attach my first picture file. Hope it worked.
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06-27-2007, 07:20 PM
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#20
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Recycles dryer sheets
Join Date: Feb 2006
Posts: 403
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well
This doesn't take into account couples with pensions... 2 teachers or 2 federal employees or other public sector type employees... 2 pensions + SS = $100k/year in retirement pretty easily. Even 1 30+ year state/federal pension + SS = $70k/year.
How many millions of people have state and federal pensions?
I have an aunt and uncle who both work for the state in California. They live an upper-middle class lifestyle. They probably have less than $250k in assets. They spend whatever they make ($120k/year). No investment accounts or retirement accounts. But when they retire their pensions will be $120k/year and I think they just plan to spend, spend, spend forever.
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