Waning Wealth

The inflation-adjusted median wealth of families headed by someone over 61 rose 40% between 1989 and 2013, from $150,000 to $210,000. For households headed by someone aged 40 to 61, wealth fell 31% from $154,000 to $106,000, while for households headed by someone under 40, wealth declined by 28% from $20,000 to just $14,000. While the Great Recession is clearly partly to blame, it has merely accentuated longer-term trends.