Sobering stats on middle class

gsa1fan

Middle class shrinking

Justacommeman

Well this guy doesn't work for ABC or Blomberg so it can't possibly be true

For the heck of it

• 83 percent of all U.S. stocks are in the hands of 1 percent of the people.
• 61 percent of Americans "always or usually" live paycheck to paycheck, which was up from 49 percent in 2008 and 43 percent in 2007.
• 66 percent of the income growth between 2001 and 2007 went to the top 1% of all Americans.
• 36 percent of Americans say that they don't contribute anything to retirement savings.
• A staggering 43 percent of Americans have less than $10,000 saved up for retirement.
• 24 percent of American workers say that they have postponed their planned retirement age in the past year.
• Over 1.4 million Americans filed for personal bankruptcy in 2009, which represented a 32 percent increase over 2008.
• Only the top 5 percent of U.S. households have earned enough additional income to match the rise in housing costs since 1975.
• For the first time in U.S. history, banks own a greater share of residential housing net worth in the United States than all individual Americans put together.
• In 1950, the ratio of the average executive's paycheck to the average worker's paycheck was about 30 to 1. Since the year 2000, that ratio has exploded to between 300 to 500 to one.
• As of 2007, the bottom 80 percent of American households held about 7% of the liquid financial assets.
• The bottom 50 percent of income earners in the United States now collectively own less than 1 percent of the nation’s wealth.
• Average Wall Street bonuses for 2009 were up 17 percent when compared with 2008.
• In the United States, the average federal worker now earns 60% MORE than the average worker in the private sector.
• The top 1 percent of U.S. households own nearly twice as much of America's corporate wealth as they did just 15 years ago.
• In America today, the average time needed to find a job has risen to a record 35.2 weeks.
• More than 40 percent of Americans who actually are employed are now working in service jobs, which are often very low paying.
• or the first time in U.S. history, more than 40 million Americans are on food stamps, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture projects that number will go up to 43 million Americans in 2011.
• This is what American workers now must compete against: in China a garment worker makes approximately 86 cents an hour and in Cambodia a garment worker makes approximately 22 cents an hour.
• Approximately 21 percent of all children in the United States are living below the poverty line in 2010 - the highest rate in 20 years.
• Despite the financial crisis, the number of millionaires in the United States rose a whopping 16 percent to 7.8 million in 2009.
• The top 10 percent of Americans now earn around 50 percent of our national income.

roadrunner

Sobering stats MJ to be sure. I guess the FinReg and HealthCare bills will help to fix all those problems.

roadrunner

johnny9434

it sure isint pretty

OPA

Yup ... 47%+ of Americans pay no Federal taxes .... 1% of Americans pay 40% of all the taxes.... He forgot to mention that.

cohodk

America is the land of opportunity. It is still out there. However, not much incentive to look when you can get 99 checks in the mail.

Americans are not and have never been "entitled" to a job or "the dream".


I do agree that it is a disgrace that millions of baby boomers, who have been working for decades during the greatest economic expansion, have very little money saved. Pathetic.


Most of the other stats can be explained via demographics, which again is pathetic.


All of the stats listed above are at the least, disinflationary.

gsa1fan

Pathetic = • This is what American workers now must compete against: in China a garment worker makes approximately 86 cents an hour and in Cambodia a garment worker makes approximately 22 cents an hour.


TBTF / wallstreets gift to America = max profits for stockholders = top 1% = Rich get richer = pathetic!

calleocho

Are those stats really all that different anywhere else in the world?

Bear

The concern is the downward movement and its velocity, in the condition of the

middle class since 1970. Something is going terribly wrong in our Nation. It is sad

that reality is never understood until one own ox is gored. I know everyone on this

Forum expects to be in the top 1%............However, what if we don't make it.

mrearlygold

Maybe a new government office of financial literacy will be helpful

Justacommeman

<< <i>Are those stats really all that different anywhere else in the world? >>



Good point. There are probably some that are and some that aren't. I will tell you that Americans are WAY behind the curve in regards to saving and a lot of those bullet points dealt with that directly or indirectly. I guess the point is that America is supposed land of opportunity and milk and honey. That is eroding just like the middle class...................MJ

calleocho

I dont know ...

We are a consumer nation after all.

Even in good times a lot of people still lived check to check ...wether they had good jobs or bad jobs.

Also most statistics dont show 401K's as part of savings ...

While there are some very troubling bullet points which may actually get worse there are also some points which are just human nature.

Power and money have always been in the hand of the few including all political and economic ideologies.

wether is church, royalty, politcal and military elites or just plain bankers.

If anything the American middle class is an amazing anomaly.

wpr101

Does anybody here live paycheck to paycheck? 61%? It sounds like a miserable existance.

OPA

<< <i>Does anybody here live paycheck to paycheck? 61%? It sounds like a miserable existance. >>



My guess, that a good % of the 61% quoted, do not know what a budget is (probably don't know how to spell it either) and live above their means.

dimples

Hey at least americans own more toys than any other counrty.

It's the toys( cars,boats,2nd homes, 40k+ remodeling jobs) that have half of america living paycheck to paycheck.

fishcooker

Does anybody here live paycheck to paycheck? 61%? It sounds like a miserable existance.
======

Depends on who pays the bill.

Bear

I am afraid that the age of expensive toys has now come to an end.
At least for the working men and women of this Nation. The wealthy
will keep their toys, but the average middle class American ,is pretty
much thru with the playing with toys. Survival is now our lot.

gsa1fan

This morning I took a drive down a road that had 10 newer house's built on 3 acre lots. The homes were built 2005-2009 slow & steady.

95 to 125K price range. By no means fancy but nice. 7 out of the 10 had foreclosure/forsale signs in yard. Grass & weeds head high.

This was a 34 mile drive as I drove for sale signs every where. Last time 6 months ago I drove the road. I did not see all those signs.

Konahead

<< <i>Well this guy doesn't work for ABC or Blomberg so it can't possibly be true

For the heck of it

• 83 percent of all U.S. stocks are in the hands of 1 percent of the people.
• 61 percent of Americans "always or usually" live paycheck to paycheck, which was up from 49 percent in 2008 and 43 percent in 2007.
• 66 percent of the income growth between 2001 and 2007 went to the top 1% of all Americans.
• 36 percent of Americans say that they don't contribute anything to retirement savings.
• A staggering 43 percent of Americans have less than $10,000 saved up for retirement.
• 24 percent of American workers say that they have postponed their planned retirement age in the past year.
• Over 1.4 million Americans filed for personal bankruptcy in 2009, which represented a 32 percent increase over 2008.
• Only the top 5 percent of U.S. households have earned enough additional income to match the rise in housing costs since 1975.
• For the first time in U.S. history, banks own a greater share of residential housing net worth in the United States than all individual Americans put together.
• In 1950, the ratio of the average executive's paycheck to the average worker's paycheck was about 30 to 1. Since the year 2000, that ratio has exploded to between 300 to 500 to one.
• As of 2007, the bottom 80 percent of American households held about 7% of the liquid financial assets.
• The bottom 50 percent of income earners in the United States now collectively own less than 1 percent of the nation’s wealth.
• Average Wall Street bonuses for 2009 were up 17 percent when compared with 2008.
• In the United States, the average federal worker now earns 60% MORE than the average worker in the private sector.
• The top 1 percent of U.S. households own nearly twice as much of America's corporate wealth as they did just 15 years ago.
• In America today, the average time needed to find a job has risen to a record 35.2 weeks.
• More than 40 percent of Americans who actually are employed are now working in service jobs, which are often very low paying.
• or the first time in U.S. history, more than 40 million Americans are on food stamps, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture projects that number will go up to 43 million Americans in 2011.
• This is what American workers now must compete against: in China a garment worker makes approximately 86 cents an hour and in Cambodia a garment worker makes approximately 22 cents an hour.
• Approximately 21 percent of all children in the United States are living below the poverty line in 2010 - the highest rate in 20 years.
• Despite the financial crisis, the number of millionaires in the United States rose a whopping 16 percent to 7.8 million in 2009.
• The top 10 percent of Americans now earn around 50 percent of our national income. >>





I have never felt so afraid for my country! What a flipping mess.

roadrunner

47%+ of Americans pay no Federal taxes .... 1% of Americans pay 40% of all the taxes....

That in a nutshell is how the electorate stays essentially the same year after year....with the primary goal being to get re-elected year after year.

roadrunner

KUCH

Are some missing the point of the thread!!!!! Break things down to simple fundamentals. Many policies/laws have driven manufactuturing out of the US. NAFTA and recently Obamacare to name a few. These laws make us become a service country because the regulations/ taxes drive these companies else where. The next BIG one is Cap and Trade. Could be the nail in the coffin.

Thank goodness for god and gold. It's the two G's now folks. On the positive side, things will swing back...... it's just painful and downright criminal at present.

timcoin

<< <i>

<< <i>Does anybody here live paycheck to paycheck? 61%? It sounds like a miserable existance. >>



My guess, that a good % of the 61% quoted, do not know what a budget is (probably don't know how to spell it either) and live above their means. >>



Exactly! Was it you, or maybe someone else, who wrote on these boards at one time something to the effect of, "The problem is that too many middle class people are living their lives as upper middle class wannabees."?

OPA

<< <i>

<< <i>

<< <i>Does anybody here live paycheck to paycheck? 61%? It sounds like a miserable existance. >>



My guess, that a good % of the 61% quoted, do not know what a budget is (probably don't know how to spell it either) and live above their means. >>



Exactly! Was it you, or maybe someone else, who wrote on these boards at one time something to the effect of, "The problem is that too many middle class people are living their lives as upper middle class wannabees."? >>



Not my quote, but I couldn't have said it any better.

Bear

The solution is obvious. Export the poor, imprison the rich and tax the middle class.

Now, back to collecting coins.

BBN

<< <i>
Exactly! Was it you, or maybe someone else, who wrote on these boards at one time something to the effect of, "The problem is that too many middle class people are living their lives as upper middle class wannabees."? >>




That was me. And I agree that much of that 61% do not understand what a budget is. I am smack in the middle class. Almost all of my peers, co workers and friends are middle class and nearly everyone I have gotten into a money discussion with say they don't have a budget. They just wing it. What's most likely happening to these people that are "winging it" is they use up the money they have and anything left over gets paid by a credit card. The national credit card debt is somewhere around $12k. Now that number is strictly an average, but most of those friends and co workers I've spoken with carry a monthly balance.

AUandAG

<< <i>Are those stats really all that different anywhere else in the world? >>



Okay, so you think Americans should be like Rwandans, Manchurians, Tibetans, Russians, Italians or Greeks?

Why should the world be all the same?? We don't have to have one world anything.

bob

calleocho

No.

I do not think the US should be like those countries.

My comment was made more toward the idea that wealth is distributed in similar fashion regardless of economic models or political ideologies.

Im fairly sure than in Italy the top 5% also owns more than half of the wealth just like the our top 5% does here, the rest of the numbers would be roughly the same percentage wise.

I am very pro America but I am not very nationalistic, as i find it shallow and too self serving to be of any use.

wilskyy

The article is absolutely correct. Whats happening: rich get richer. Middle class gets extinct. The poor gets poorer.

Justacommeman

the one they call wilskyy

MJ

BBN

<< <i>Does anybody here live paycheck to paycheck? 61%? It sounds like a miserable existance. >>



anyone here living paycheck to paycheck has no business buying coins or bullion until they get their personal budget so far in the black that they can establish a sizable rainy day fund first.

Bear

We collect coins not because we are rich, but because we need the pleasant distraction,

in the hope of maintain some measure of our sanity,in a world that is going

completely mad.

Justacommeman

Why was the inflation/deflation thread locked? MJ

Coulport

<< <i>Why was the inflation/deflation thread locked? MJ >>



Political? Truthful but political.

Justacommeman

<< <i>

<< <i>Why was the inflation/deflation thread locked? MJ >>



Political? Truthful but political. >>



Wow, I thought the inflation/deflation thread was rather benign polictically. I think I've been desensitised by lurking too much on the OFR and I've lost my equilibrium here. I've lost my way

I'll shut up now. MJ

yellowkid

<< <i>Does anybody here live paycheck to paycheck? 61%? It sounds like a miserable existance. >>



I would bet that the majority of the people who live like that have lived beyond their means for years, Americans are for the most part fiscally irresponsible.

Bear

There are a number of reasons for living beyond ones means
without being a spendthrift.

Supporting an aged parent with a hired helper. My sister and I employed such a person
for 18 years. Even when my mother entered a nursing home.

Many parents attempt to take the burden of college expenses and tuition, off the backs of their children

Unexpected medical expenses for the family due to illness or accident.Sometimes this medical care is
required for the rest of a persons life.

Loss of a quality job when the person is over 50, only to be replaced by a job at half the pay.

Bad luck on having to retire at the worst possible time ,with a 401K that has suffered tremendous loses.


Very few people are smart enough or lucky enough to escape the misfortunes of life. When we are young and healthy,
we see a bright future free of the burdens that later years seems to inundate us with. If one is fortunate to amass funds
and security to meet one later needs , I say more power to them. However, for the great majority of folks we grow
"TOO SOON OLD AND TOO LATE SMART".

OnlyGoldIsMoney

<< <i>The article is absolutely correct. Whats happening: rich get richer. Middle class gets extinct. The poor gets poorer. >>




Sorry, but I do not buy into this kind of predestination. I started my business in 1996 and was poor for two years surviving client check to client check. There are no unemployment compensation checks or bailouts for the self employed.

We're responsible for our own success or failure. When we no longer believe in class mobility we're no better than the ossified, class conscious economies of old Europe.

pbyco

I was believing the stats until I hit that government employees make 60% more than their private sector counterparts. Truth is in my field I make less than I could in the private sector.

calleocho

the government vs private stats probably include the generous benefits that public workers get such as guarantee pension plans, full health care etc.

pf70collector

yellowkid

<< <i>There are a number of reasons for living beyond ones means
without being a spendthrift.

Supporting an aged parent with a hired helper. My sister and I employed such a person
for 18 years. Even when my mother entered a nursing home.

Many parents attempt to take the burden of college expenses and tuition, off the backs of their children

Unexpected medical expenses for the family due to illness or accident.Sometimes this medical care is
required for the rest of a persons life.

Loss of a quality job when the person is over 50, only to be replaced by a job at half the pay.

Bad luck on having to retire at the worst possible time ,with a 401K that has suffered tremendous loses.


Very few people are smart enough or lucky enough to escape the misfortunes of life. When we are young and healthy,
we see a bright future free of the burdens that later years seems to inundate us with. If one is fortunate to amass funds
and security to meet one later needs , I say more power to them. However, for the great majority of folks we grow
"TOO SOON OLD AND TOO LATE SMART". >>



Bear I didn't mean that people don't get hit by "life" and end up behind the eight ball, but I think for every one in that situation there are two
more who got there by spending too much, I've seen a lot of it.

BigMoneyLewis

Everything is going exactly as planned. Here comes the New World Order .
Decades of well executed plans and financial fumbles are starting to be clear to ONLY
a very small minority who are smart enough to see what's going on. Eliminating the middle class
is just another step . When you control the money, you control the people (unless people wake up, decide to be patriots, and make a stand)
This country does not belong to the politicians (they work for us) . The country belongs to the citizens . And if the government gets to big for it's britches ,
you make "adjustments" and I don't mean go to the poles every 4 years and vote.
More drastic measures are needed to fix this problem .
For those who believe this country's economy will not fall , you are the majority ,and you are about to be in for a Very Rude awakening.
Not only will the U.S. dollar collaps (and sooner than latter) but it was sabotaged and meant to fail.
I don't know what those sneaky Rothschilds are up to , or what their ultimate goal is , but it's not in your best interest.

Prepare to make a stand .
Time is running out fast.



Lewis

mrearlygold

<< <i>There are a number of reasons for living beyond ones means
without being a spendthrift.

Supporting an aged parent with a hired helper. My sister and I employed such a person
for 18 years. Even when my mother entered a nursing home.

Many parents attempt to take the burden of college expenses and tuition, off the backs of their children

Unexpected medical expenses for the family due to illness or accident.Sometimes this medical care is
required for the rest of a persons life.

Loss of a quality job when the person is over 50, only to be replaced by a job at half the pay.

Bad luck on having to retire at the worst possible time ,with a 401K that has suffered tremendous loses.


Very few people are smart enough or lucky enough to escape the misfortunes of life. When we are young and healthy,
we see a bright future free of the burdens that later years seems to inundate us with. If one is fortunate to amass funds
and security to meet one later needs , I say more power to them. However, for the great majority of folks we grow
"TOO SOON OLD AND TOO LATE SMART". >>




How true

BBN

<< <i>

<< <i>There are a number of reasons for living beyond ones means
without being a spendthrift.

Supporting an aged parent with a hired helper. My sister and I employed such a person
for 18 years. Even when my mother entered a nursing home.

Many parents attempt to take the burden of college expenses and tuition, off the backs of their children

Unexpected medical expenses for the family due to illness or accident.Sometimes this medical care is
required for the rest of a persons life.

Loss of a quality job when the person is over 50, only to be replaced by a job at half the pay.

Bad luck on having to retire at the worst possible time ,with a 401K that has suffered tremendous loses.


Very few people are smart enough or lucky enough to escape the misfortunes of life. When we are young and healthy,
we see a bright future free of the burdens that later years seems to inundate us with. If one is fortunate to amass funds
and security to meet one later needs , I say more power to them. However, for the great majority of folks we grow
"TOO SOON OLD AND TOO LATE SMART". >>



Bear I didn't mean that people don't get hit by "life" and end up behind the eight ball, but I think for every one in that situation there are two
more who got there by spending too much, I've seen a lot of it. >>




My generation has been the irresponsible one living beyond its means. My generation had to jump into its dream home in their mid to late 20s in loans they had no business getting in with ARMs or interest only loans and think they need two cars worth $30k each. Life hasn't happened to most of the middle class my age. They just tried to bring the middle class up to a new standard of living.

BBN

<< <i>
a very small minority who are smart enough to see what's going on. Eliminating the middle class
>>



I still have to disagree. The middle class' own behavior has hampered them. I don't see manufacturing jobs leaving as the death of the middle class. This is a different era and even if we still had many of those manufacturing jobs most of those jobs would maybe pay barely enough to qualify as middle class.

57loaded

<< <i>

<< <i>Why was the inflation/deflation thread locked? MJ >>



Political? Truthful but political. >>



this is probably next.

ricko

Economics cannot be factually analyzed without the political ingredient. It is, after all, in America, the government that runs the economy. Cheers, RickO

Frankcoins

<< <i>Yup ... 47%+ of Americans pay no Federal taxes .... 1% of Americans pay 40% of all the taxes.... He forgot to mention that. >>



Wrong...47% pay no Federal INCOME taxes. However, being exempt from income tax does not mean you're exempt from federal taxes. Everyone who works is liable for payroll taxes, contributions to Medicare and Social Security that come out of every paycheck. There are also excise taxes on some goods and services, most notably the 18.4 cents per gallon tax on gasoline. The Congressional Budget Office found that earners in the very poorest Americans..the bottom 20%, where most of those with no income tax liability fall, shouldered 4.3 percent of the payroll tax burden in 2005 and 11.1 percent of the excise taxes. Their effective tax rate (which is calculated by dividing taxes paid by total income) in those categories, according to the CBO, was in fact significantly higher than the rate of the top 20%

mhammerman

"...the very poorest Americans..the bottom 20%, where most of those with no income tax liability fall, shouldered 4.3 percent of the payroll tax burden in 2005 and 11.1 percent of the excise taxes. Their effective tax rate (which is calculated by dividing taxes paid by total income) in those categories, according to the CBO, was in fact significantly higher than the rate of the top 20%"

And that is why there will never be a flat tax.

OPA

<< <i>

<< <i>Yup ... 47%+ of Americans pay no Federal taxes .... 1% of Americans pay 40% of all the taxes.... He forgot to mention that. >>



Wrong...47% pay no Federal INCOME taxes. However, being exempt from income tax does not mean you're exempt from federal taxes. Everyone who works is liable for payroll taxes, contributions to Medicare and Social Security that come out of every paycheck. There are also excise taxes on some goods and services, most notably the 18.4 cents per gallon tax on gasoline. The Congressional Budget Office found that earners in the very poorest Americans..the bottom 20%, where most of those with no income tax liability fall, shouldered 4.3 percent of the payroll tax burden in 2005 and 11.1 percent of the excise taxes. Their effective tax rate (which is calculated by dividing taxes paid by total income) in those categories, according to the CBO, was in fact significantly higher than the rate of the top 20% >>



Your stats do not take into account, that the bottom 20% are also subsidized in some form of State or Federal aid, such as Food Stamps, subsidized housing, child care and numerous other free or subsidized "bees", that us Tax Payers are not entitled to. If you take that into consideration, their Federal & State TAX Liability is zilch.

Bear

In the past 10 years, the number of workers has probably increased 10%

while at the same time we have lost perhaps 5 million quality jobs. With

the middle class crushed and those poor souls on the bottom of the barrel

down and out, who is going to buy the goods that the big corporations have

outsourced. At some point, we will have to begin protecting industries that

build and assemble products with American labor in American factories.It is

about time we started to worry about the people of this Nation and screw the

world economy. Our financial support of Red China has built up a Nation that is

even now flexing its military muscle in the Pacific. Remember, the USA has long

been a Pacific Power and we should not take lightly when that power is being

contested.

We have watched industries such as electronic goods (TVs, toasters, alarm clocks ect),

shoes, hand bags and leather goods, clothing, printed material, steel, tires, and the list goes

on and on. My wife just bought a box of tooth picks and they were made in China. Just how long

will it be until the US Mint outsources our coinage to China.It really is time to start protecting

our own again.