- Census data show wealth of older Americans is 47 times that of young adults, widest gap ever, Associated Press, November 7, 2011, Washington Post: “The wealth gap between younger and older Americans has stretched to the widest on record, worsened by a prolonged economic downturn that has wiped out job opportunities for young adults and saddled them with housing and college debt. The typical U.S. household headed by a person age 65 or older has a net worth 47 times greater than a household headed by someone under 35, according to an analysis of census data released Monday. While people typically accumulate assets as they age, this wealth gap is now more than double what it was in 2005 and nearly five times the 10-to-1 disparity a quarter-century ago, after adjusting for inflation…”
- Why the wealth gap between young and old is wider than ever, By Mark Trumbull, November 7, 2011, Christian Science Monitor: “The wealth divide between older and younger Americans has widened sharply in recent years – because of both the deep recession and longer-term trends. That’s the conclusion of a new analysis released by the Pew Research Center, which looked at an array of government numbers to reach its conclusions. In all, the typical household headed by someone younger than 35 has seen its net worth fall by 68 percent between 1984 and 2009, after adjusting for inflation, according to the Pew report released Monday. Those in the 35-to-44 age group also saw a decline in net worth over that period, a drop of 44 percent…”
Poverty-related issues in the news, from the Institute for Research on Poverty