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U.S. Census Bureau
Between 2005 and 2010, Generation X saw the biggest percent decline in median household net worth.
Almost everyone in America has good reason to throw a little pity party whenever they think about what the economic turmoil of recent years has done to their financial situation. A government report released Monday finds that the 35- to 44-year-old members of Generation X may have the most cause to feel sorry for themselves.
The Census Bureau study found that between 2005 and 2010, households led by 35- to 44-year-olds saw the biggest percent decline in median household net worth. For those households, median net worth declined 59 percent, from $80,521 in 2005 to $33,200 in 2010, adjusted in constant 2010 dollars.
In terms of actual dollars lost, 45- to 54-year-olds took the biggest hit. For households in that age range, median net worth declined by $54,881, to $90,434. That’s a 38 percent drop from 2005, calculated in 2010 dollars.
Overall, the study found that median household net worth in the United States declined by 35 percent between 2005 and 2010, to $66,740. The housing bust and stock market declines were mainly to blame for the drop.
The Census report is based on the annual Survey of Income and Program Participation, which takes a detailed look at the financial situation of Americans from all walks of life. The survey uses the renter or owner of record in each household to determine what age group the household falls into.
The Census data comes a week after the Federal Reserve released a separate survey showing that the median net worth of the American family dropped 39 percent from about $126,000 in 2007 to $77,000 in 2010.
The Census study looks at a slightly longer period and offers detailed breakdown by race, age, education level and region. But the two studies come to the same sobering conclusion: We’ve lost a lot of economic ground in recent years, and it will take a long time to work our way back.
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Much better. I own my own business. The recession has allowed me to cut costs by replacing overpaid, low skill workers with subcontractors, part-timers, and short-termers. As long as I am able to keep my customer base growing, the economic crisis great for reducing expenses. Its a catch-all excuse. I can tell anyone who wants a raise "we can't afford that right now...the economy, after all", when I really mean and they really hear: "I'm not paying you a cent more and if you don't like it, leave!" Don't give me crap about if I don't pay my workers, I won't have any customers. There are two Americas and one is doing just fine and it will do even better the more debased the lower strata become. For the individual the choice is clear: toughen up, get some marketable skills and make sure you are part of the America doing the exploiting. Otherwise, get used to being exploited. This is your America, you made it, and it is only going to worse for you and better for us. Suckers.
Wow. Define "sociopath."
yeah jimfromgeorgia is a real georgia peach isn't he, although while I suspect he's actually on the other end of the conversation he's describing... he does a fine job of revealing the true conservative agenda does he not? Screw you, I got mine and I'll take more- out of your hide- until I wake up some day with a knife in my gut courtesy of one of my kids I've driven over the edge...
georgia- one of the most racist states going right? Secessionist movement?
http://www.jackandjillpolitics.com/2009/04/georgia-state-senate-use-racist-code-language-to-threaten-secession-from-usa/
Jim speaks the truth. Life is a pyramid scheme- the more people you employ/control, the wealthier you become by sucking their labors. Its "best" to pay people as little as possible to ensure they can't build wealth and remain dependent.
As much as a sociopath he sounds- he's true
Whoa we've got a live one folks-
"jimfromgeorgia" does not "speak the truth"- jim merely updates and makes a petty personal little personification of Evil.
And since "jim" clearly likes to brag, seeks attention- it's a good bet he'll get it- more than anticipated and in an unexpected (to "jim") manner...
Jim From Georgia.
The question to you is.
If your the employer.....Why did you hire low skill overprice employees?
Being a buisiness owner myself...I call bs on your post.
This is why obama will win. Give it all to the boomers and then file bankruptcy and make the genxers work until 80 . . We know that con game full well comming from a x er.
that's about right. the quiet shift of Gen X'ers to 401k's was actually dumping them onto the open market where wealth doesnt grow automatically for everyone. It seemed ok then because the markets were inflating in the bubbles so it seemed that retirement was guaranteed by simply putting your money into something you know nothing about and watch it grow. We all know now that that is simply impossible.
damn people look in the mirror! dumb@$$e$!
SOUNDS LIKE MANY HERE HAVE AN EXTRA HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS !
why don't a couple of thousand of you get together and invest it, that would be 100,000 DOLLARS by 2,000 PEOPLE = 200 million dollars, "WOW" YOU COULD BECOME BILLIONAIRES IN NO TIME, the group could purchase 2000 homes, and rent them out for a positive cash flow of around 1.5 million dollars per month, to be reinvested, as they go up in value what are you waiting for a handout???
I'm exaggerating a little to motivate people you have the power to get together in groups and invest your way to being wealthy instead of waiting for someone on the top to do it for you that would be a long wait, for A Democrat or A Republican!!!
Its hard to feel sorry for people who will not help themselves!!!
If a couple of hundred of you would form an investment club, and start by investing a hundred each per week, or per month, you could make all the money you need !
by week it would be 80,000 per month with that you could buy one house per month in a year you as a group would own 12 homes or apartments, with positive cash flow with a net worth of around a million dollars! it would be more than you have now, and plenty of potential to get more!!! [ by the way those homes could increase in value making you even more money]
If 2000 did it with a hundred dollars per week, it would be 800,000 per month, with that you could purchase 10 80,000 dollar homes per month, and pay cash for them, in a year you could have 120 paid for, with a monthly positive cash flow of around 80,000 dollars per month that could be invested, the investment would be secure, as they would all be paid for, and many would go up in value, and they would be worth around 10 million dollars!
This could also be done on a smaller scale like twenty dollars a week, or fifty dollars !!!
HEADS UP "dale" SCAM ARTIST ALERT "dale" wants your money
"dale" pops up with his "easy money" advice again- bet he's got some swell inside advice all ready to go for anyone "asking for it".
"dale" is a scammer looking for a few suckers on a board he expects will be seen by enough people to snag a few-
This guy is re-posting his message verbatim despite the poor sentence structure- sure sign of a con artist
"... with positive cash flow with a net worth of around a million dollars!"
This guy is a scam artist or at least thinks he is- notice how poorly he constructs his post- bad
Heads up!"dale" CON MAN ALERT "dale"
Expect a 2nd person to post and vouch for "dale"- scam city
TenthCircle: Calm down son" "Calm down" what is it that scared you about investing in a club or group? was it " that " if you were to make a fortune you would not have anything to complain about? or if you make money you could not blame others for your own mistakes?
Gee circle If your that scared don't invest!!!
Unless; "well" unless somehow you were to lose that silver spoon , and you had to make it on your own!!!
No bait scam boy- but it's clear and confirming why you're still hanging around.
In fact I think I'll make sure my warning's posted where ever you post as "dale-763548"
Easy to do scam boy - see you around. Maybe I'll help you with your poor spelling...
HEADS UP "dale" SCAM ARTIST ALERT "dale" wants your money
"dale" pops up with his "easy money" advice again- bet he's got some swell inside advice all ready to go for anyone "asking for it".
"dale" is a scammer looking for a few suckers on a board he expects will be seen by enough people to snag a few-
This guy is re-posting his message verbatim despite the poor sentence structure- sure sign of a con artist
"... with positive cash flow with a net worth of around a million dollars!"
This guy is a scam artist or at least thinks he is- notice how poorly he constructs his post- bad
Heads up!"dale" CON MAN ALERT "dale"
Expect a 2nd person to post and vouch for "dale"- scam city
Tenth Circle: I ll just have to wait until you go to sleep !!! "ha "ha"ha~~~go to sleep little circle put your wallet on my shoulder go to sleep ~~~ go to sleep ! Seriously Circle you are over reacting!!!
THIS IS JUST AN IDEA!!! I'm not trying to get anyone to give me any money! I'm telling them that they can start their own group without me!!!
hello knock knock!!! where is you proof I'm trying to scam money, if you are afraid to read the idea then don't read it "son"!!!
He has a point...and I have been saying the same.
However I would call it a "Credit Union" Where we lend the money to ourselves and right off the fee's.
Screw the banks and existing financial institutions. I say we beat them at their own game.
If all the boomers hadn't had their midlife crisises, married again and had 2nd and 3rd families, Gen X would be in much better shape. The Gen X kids get screwed because parents got divorced and couldn't help them with college but the Gen Y kids have their college covered and Daddy and Mommy aren't retiring when they can because they've got to pay for the new family. And of course even if they retire, they just get rehired and proceed to double dip while we struggle to get jobs at McD after getting a masters.
Pot calling the kettle black- nothing could possibly be YOUR own self-absorbed fault could it heath.
No, of course your plight has to be caused by re-marrying boomers-
Pathetic, whining children- bet you avoided serving in the military too, avoided it like a plague coward
So incredibly revealing how so many of you keep referring to yourselves as "the kids"
What are you in your 20's 30's or still at mama's?
Or in your 20's 30's AND still at your mama's?
I owed way less debt in 2005 than I do today. Even though my wages has slowly creeped up to the middle, of middle class earnings, I have took on lots more risks in order to achieve a possible equilibrium of financial security. 2005 I owned 2 properties and a debt load of only 24% of monthly salary, today I own a total of 5 properties and two small business while still working for the man. (need insurance and company match on 401K) but with all this acquired wealth comes the bill. 38% of debt load for my monthly salary and over 280k in total debt for all risks associated with these two mom and pop start up businesses. What is currently killing me is sluggish Consumer spending, inflationary pressures from fuel, food, a rise in wholesale goods, rise in shipping costs, tax rate uncertainties, and many other things all connected to a piss poor 1.9% GDP rate! Nope not any better off than 7 years ago, and overly stressed to boot!
The past generations had large families and now it is impossible unless your rich or taking government handouts. Generation x has been hit hard by rising costs,depleted ira's/401k's and income not keeping up with inflation. Now retirement ages going up too. The only ones making out well are the ones before generation x.
"The only ones making out well are the ones before generation x."
And that would be who steve?
Those of us who went thru WWII?
The Depression?
Viet Nam Vets?
You've bought into the game bunky- and the young turks running amuck on wall st ARE Gen x'er's
You know little of what you speak so freely...
And to be clear: in WWII, Viet Nam, Korean "Police Action", we didn't have anything like contemporary state of the art medivac, medicine, armor, communication…
I am living generation x so I think I can speak about it.
I know how previous generations are better off and i mean the working class . There at one time use to be only one income needed and now you need two incomes.
Previous generations did go through allot that is true and i do not ague with that. Now can they retire...Yess The x'rs will not be able to retire ok well maybe at age 75.
Steve-2009: Did you ever think that gen x wasted more money than the average over the years? I know many Boomer's did! many gen x Er's bought cars that cost way more than their budgets would have allowed, many took vacations they could not afford, or ran the credit card up "way up" in many cases, thinking that tomorrow they would make more money to pay for it! I know many Boomer's did; the question is what are we going to do about it now, blaming everyone but ourselves does not get anything accomplished!!!
Some advice steve- take it or leave it-
If you want to be taken seriously (outside your immediate group of friends)
learn how to spell, a little about grammer, syntax....
Seems to be a common flaw of way too many x'ers- inattention to, non-interest in details
lol thats the best answer you have...ha
Steve responds with the intellectual equivalent of "I know you are but what am I"
Sigh….
Can't have an intelligent conversation with someone who is oblivious to the blatant contradictions within their own statements---
You're doing a good job of eliminating your credibility all by yourself your self steve- don't need me for that
The US is quickly becoming a 3rd world nation with the wealthiest having the money and power, and the rest of us are broke.
Juan Herrera; The reason I say people could invest as a group is because of the time factor; if they work hard for twenty years; many who can not find decent work, will not be able to climb out of the hole they have been put in but IF THEY WERE IN A GROUP like 2000 thousand people and they decided to each invest say 5,000 dollars, the group could buy around 125 homes in the 80,000 dollar range, and pay cash for them, when leased it would generate around 80 or 90 thousand dollars each month of positive cash flow!
Then if wach member of the group invested only 25 dollars each week after they would generate another 200,000 dollars per month to invest somewhere, of their chosing, this would give people a much better chance to make profits!!! And it would be much safer to!!!
"dale" continues to struggle with the concept of spelling- while readily dishing out his money advice- pretty funny.
Yeah easy! Just find "like" 2000 people you can trust with money and... oh... yeah...
But C'mon folks, pony up $5000 each---- "dale" only needs 2000 more people (as he has no $5000 of his own)- but hey---- he'll set it all up for you right "dale"?
"DALE'S OBVIOUS FLAW:
(and what exposes his ignorance and lack of experience with money himself) is his repeated presumption without question that if you just had a large sum of money- everything else would just fall into place- no risk mention what so ever.
Dale just ignore the spelling and grammar police,no ones as perfect as him....lol
"grammar police"
How simplistically petty and typical of your generation.
My conclusion after reading the comments here is gen x'ers are the virtual equivelent of the youngest (and usually most spoiled) born sibling of a family. Perhaps literally? Nah...
The response equivalent of "Wahhhhhhhhhh!!"
Steve; I was waiting for him to pull me over, and give me a lecture before the ticket for bad spelling!!
Circle: [doesn't mention any risk!] What risk is there with 125 paid for homes? worth ten million dollars, that could go up in value!, Circle are you afraid someone would carry them off during the night? or they would shrink or something like that!!!
Spelling police - The poster you complained about could be like me who lost an eye and has significant vision issues.
To me the posts with spelling problems do not detract from the message.
Get a life.
Dale: Houses that fell from $175K down to $120K will rent for $700-800 a month. An $80 K house rents for under $500 plus utilities.
Just to share my own story:
I'm at the tail end of Gen X but was a late child of parents who were pre-boomers (my late father was born in 1930). I had the value of work and money drilled into my head. I earned my accolades on my own merits.
I did fairly well in the job market in the mid- to late-90s, and even into the early 2000s. In 1998, I scored a pretty nice job at Gateway Computers (when they were still called Gateway 2000, even), making $13.75 an hour with benefits. Lived within my means and even began saving. By 2002, the IT industry started to flounder thanks to the whole dot-com bust and slowing in consumer IT spending (people simply weren't upgrading systems as much as they were in the past). Things started going south afterward.
I've had to relocate twice since, which consumed the vast majority of my paltry $10K in savings only to find piddly industry jobs that barely paid enough to cover cost of living expenses. This has been the case for the last 8 years. I finally got a job that I've been working at for the last two years and I'm now making $13.50 an hour with minimal benefits.
A decade after Gateway, I'm making $0.25 less per hour in base pay, but my benefits cost significantly more with premiums and co-pays that increase annually. Cost of goods and services have skyrocketed compared to 1998. My purchasing power is in the garbage. I can't afford to save. I can't afford to plan for retirement. I can't imagine how people with lots of student loan or personal loan (mortgage/auto) debt live.
As for people saying Gen X'ers need to enlist the aid of Gen Y, as Gen Y will be affected equally. Good luck with that. No offense to the moderate Gen Y'ers, but Gen Y is, without a doubt, some of the most narcissistic, self-entitled people I've had to deal with who only care about how things affect them and demanding praise for even sub-par effort. The "Echo Boomer" isn't applied just because of the generation's relative size. They really do echo the Boomer generation in general "gimme that it's mine!" attitude.
Captiosus -
you didn't mention anything at all regarding how much education you have- it's kinda relevant to put your story in perspective don't you think?
A one time investment of five thousand dollars by two thousand people = ten million dollars!
A twenty five dollar investment by two thousand people each week = two hundred thousand dollars per month!
125 HOUSES COSTING 80,000 EACH =TEN MILLION DOLLARS! if all are rented for seven hundred dollars it = 87,500 per month That comes to a little over a million dollars per year there will be costs involved but still its a good cash flow!
Because the houses would be paid for, the leases would generate cash money for years, that is a lot for five thousand dollars, one could even say it was some security for the 2000 investors, over time the rental money could make more money!
don't call me I'm not interested If I here of a group that thinks this way I will join it, I might even join two or three groups like that after I check them out, " hell" i might even join more if they get set up!!!
this guy "dale" is a crook, fishing for people to (try to) scam money off of- he's multiply posted this
"Tenthcircle": It sounds like your getting sleepy to me!
Your feeble response is " so " much shorter this time! "CIRCLE" wake up your starting to doze off you forgot to add a period "." at the end of the sentence.
This is too funny. Ok, look...back in the 60's and 70's, where people could still trust each other, this type of "it takes money to make money" thing would have worked. Since then, there has been no end to amount of hucksters out, presenting their investment plans, namely the foreign currency markets (stock market). Do you have any idea how many of these have been an outright scam? From another angle, how soon we forget the marvelous nave of Madoff.
Groups of people CAN make money. However, you are forgetting human nature. It's called greed. Therefore, it's never an honest investment. It becomes a pyramid scheme, since the guy at the top wants to get paid like a billionaire for his efforts...therefore, he constantly has to find new investors to keep the scheme going, to keep more and more people from becoming awarte of what is actually going on. Then the regulators who have to be bribed isn't cheap, so the scheme can keep going. The next thing you know, we have another crook who has stolen over 100 million dollars from people.
I'm not saying it's not possible, DALE. However, a fool and his money are soon parted. Gen X was screwed. GET OVER IT. Any idea like this will screw them further. Like another poster said, the most Gen X will ever get is crumbs from the table (compared to other generations), and that is in the best of days.
Editori ; What your saying is very true, and it could happen!
But it could be set up with safe guards to stop that from happening; also; If a plan like this would ever get to the point of being tried, and things were put in place like no house could be sold, or borrowed on , without a majority vote and that anyone working in management at the top for the group would have to be someone voted in by the group, and their salaries would be fixed salaries there could be other ways to safe guard it put in place; like only a certain amount would be at risk, of the positive cash flow, that was controlled by one person, most things would have to go through a committee, that would sign off on it, etc. there are ways to protect the group , also they could set it up so the members would receive dividends, after the profits reached a certain amount, there are ways to make it a safe way to climb up the ladder for a rather small amount of money!
Business owners and industrial leaders in the USA are beginning to panic because of the fact that basic industrial skills have become EXTREMELY high tech. The high school guidance counselors are not mentoring students to attend college before a university to learn and become certified in a basic industrial skill before making a final decision whethor or not advancing to a university once they graduate from college is the right thing to do.
The result of this ignorance is that most university students, especially engineers, obatain a bachelor's or master's degree and have much difficulty finding a job in their feild of profession because they have no basic industrial skill or experience related to the production needs of the EXTREME high-tech business world.
OK - Gen X just turned 40 a few years ago. All the Booomers i know are taking 62 and out on their SS so stop the wining boomers. If any of u are speaking of those living in a parent's basement, you are talking about Gen Y - ya know, the one's who's mommy's text their PROFESSORS if they get a bad grade? Sheesh - give our little Gen x population a break.
Gen xer here. Boomers suc k and will drain every nickle out of SSI and medicare. Based on their historical giant ponzi schemes with dot com as well as the others ..... I am dead on. When the system is dead broke, they will pass laws making the xers and the next gen pay for it ---count on it. They are some of the most greedy sobs alive.
It Is Broken !!!!
On the other hand, I will have all debt paid off by the end of the year.
worse off. both 'rents and in-laws were dumped by their insurance companies once serious health issues were discovered. hubby and i are picking up the tab despite being so underwater on our home we need scuba diving gear and hubby having a 6 figure student loan. fun times!