06 September 2014 (15:55 UTC-07 Tango)/11 Dhu l-Qa’da 1435/15 Shahrivar 1393/13 Gui-You 4712

“Families at the bottom of the income distribution saw continued substantial declines in average real incomes between 2010 and 2013, continuing the trend observed between the 2007 and 2010 surveys.”-2013 Survey of Consumer Finances

Every three years the privately Jewish run U.S. central bank known as Federal Reserve releases data called Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF).  Their latest survey has them admitting that all their efforts to save the U.S. economy, since 2007, has only resulted in making the rich richer and everybody else poor.

The SCF says overall ‘mean (average) income’ went up 4%, but when you look at income using the ‘median’ method it actually dropped 5%.

The Federal Reserve calls making the rich richer “income concentration”.  This means the majority of money being made is going to a small elite, specifically to the top 10% of “families”:   “…all but the highest quintile saw declines in median income between 2010 and 2013, with second and third quintiles seeing the largest declines (7 percent and 6 percent, respectively).  Median income increased 2 percent for the top income decile.  Mean income declined strongly for the bottom two quintiles and barely budged for those between the 40th and 90th percentiles, whereas the mean income of the top decile increased 10 percent between 2010 and 2013.”

“Families in the middle to uppermiddle parts (between the 40th and 90th percentiles) of the income distribution saw little change in average real incomes between 2010 and 2013 and thus have failed to recover the losses experienced between 2007 and 2010.    Only families at the very top of the income distribution saw widespread income gains between 2010 and 2013, although mean and median incomes were still below 2007 levels.”

“Overall, between 2010 and 2013 there was little movement in median and mean net worth, as the median fell a modest 2 percent and the mean increased slightly…..families at the bottom of the income distribution saw continued substantial declines in real net worth between 2010 and 2013, while those in the top half saw, on average, modest gains.  Ownership rates of housing and businesses fell substantially between 2010 and 2013.   Retirement plan participation in 2013 continued on the downward trajectory observed between the 2007 and 2010 surveys for families in the bottom half of the income distribution.  Participation rebounded slightly for upper-middle income families, but it did not move back to the levels observed in 2007……decrease in stock ownership rates was most pronounced for the bottom half of the income distribution.  The decrease in ownership rates for housing and corporate equity holdings was concentrated in the bottom and upper-middle parts of the income distribution, though the decrease in business ownership was concentrated among higher-income families.”

The Federal Reserve has noted a new trend involving education; instead of seeing a high school diploma as increasing your income, it is now seen as reducing the amount of pay you might lose, compared to somebody with no high school diploma.  Apparently having a college degree is still the best way to attain income security: “The median income of households with a high school diploma or less fell between 6 and 9 percent, whereas the mean income of those without a high school diploma fell much more than that of those who graduated from high school (a 17 percent decline versus a 2 percent decline).  The median income of those with some college decreased 11 percent, whereas the median income of those with a college degree increased 1 percent.  Mean income for those with a college degree increased 5 percent.”

Overall, the net worth of the average U.S. citizen is down: “…the median net worth of all families fell a modest 2 percent…..mean net worth was effectively unchanged….the 2010 SCF showed dramatic decreases in median and mean net worth in the 2007–10 period….driven by the boom and bust in house and other asset prices. The bust, in particular, had a disproportionate effect on families in the middle of the net worth distribution, whose wealth portfolio is dominated by housing.

….Families with higher levels of usual income reported greater levels of net worth…..Median net worth decreased between 2010 and 2013 for most usual income groups, falling between 10 and 17 percent….Those in the lowest usual income quintile saw small decreases in median net worth (12 percent,….), but they also saw the largest proportional decrease in mean net worth (21 percent,….).  Households in the second and third quintile of usual income saw large declines in median net worth (10 percent and 17 percent, respectively),….The fourth income quintile was the only group that experienced increases in both median and mean net worth: 16 percent for median net worth and 14 percent for mean net worth.

Those without a high school diploma saw no change in median net worth between 2010 and 2013, but their mean net worth fell 9 percent. Those with high school diplomas or some college both saw 14 percent declines in median net worth; the former saw a 15 percent decline in mean net worth, while those with some college had 9 percent higher mean net worth in 2013.  Median net worth increased 5 percent for those with college degrees, while their mean net worth declined 2 percent.”