U.S. Household Net Worth Reached Record $90.2 Trillion in Third Quarter
December 08 2016 - 12:40PM
Dow Jones News
The wealth of U.S. households climbed to a record $90.2 trillion
in the third quarter, driven by a powerful buildup in both real
estate and stocks.
Stockholdings—both directly and through retirement accounts like
401(k)s—climbed by $494 billion last quarter while real estate,
which is primarily people's homes, rose in value by $554 billion,
according to a Federal Reserve report released Thursday.
The report shows that U.S. households, in aggregate, had
tremendous assets at their disposal, about $105 trillion against
about $15 trillion of debt. That wealth has likely grown since the
report was released because the stock market has rallied
dramatically over the past month.
The data underscore one of the nation's central economic
challenges. While the value of U.S. corporations and real estate
has never been higher, many Americans remain profoundly frustrated
by the direction of the U.S. economy.
The Fed's report provides no detail on the distribution of
assets. But it is well known that gains in real estate have been
especially concentrated in urban areas and the coasts, even as many
parts of the country have yet to fully recover from the housing
crisis that began last decade.
Those who don't own real estate have faced rapidly rising rents
in many areas of the U.S.
Stock wealth is especially concentrated in retirement accounts
and in the wealthiest households, so the gains may be largely
inaccessible to those who lost good jobs or didn't have the
accounts available.
Still, the report underscores how the economy President-elect
Donald Trump is poised to inherit will have a strong impetus from
the recovery in asset values.
The report also showed that balances in savings accounts and
time deposits climbed by $331 billion. Owner's equity in real
estate—the value of people's homes minus the balance on their
mortgages—climbed above $13 trillion for the first time since
2006.
Write to Josh Zumbrun at Josh.Zumbrun@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
December 08, 2016 12:25 ET (17:25 GMT)
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