Dollars in a person's hand / Source: Vladyslav Starozhylov / Alamy / Profimedia
The threshold to enter the richest 10% of Americans has increased by nearly 40% in five years, according to a Visa analysis based on US Census Bureau data for 2024, reports CNBCtaken over by News.ro.
The study shows that a household must have a net worth of about $1.8 million to be in the top 10 percent, up from $1.3 million in 2019. Net worth includes home, savings, retirement accounts, investments and other assets, minus debts.
The income required to enter this bracket also increased from about $170,000 to about $210,000 annually. By comparison, the median income of an American household is $83,730 in 2024.
Visa considers “wealthy” a household that earns at least $210,000 or has a net worth of about $1.8 million. About 12.2 million households fall into this category, and 57% are headed by Generation Xers. Millennials and Gen Z together make up 31%, while baby boomers make up just 12%.
The accelerated growth of wealth is mainly attributed to the explosion of housing prices and the advance of the stock market. Between 2020 and 2024, the median home price rose by about 25%, and the S&P 500 rose by 109%.
During the same period, incomes grew much more slowly, by only 23%, which explains why households that already owned significant assets benefited the most.
Economists note that the years 2020-2024 have been exceptionally good for Americans with pre-existing wealth, despite the pandemic, high inflation and rising borrowing costs.
