(Bloomberg) — The wealth of the typical American senior increased by about $91,000 during the pandemic years as home and stock values rose, a new study shows.
That was the average increase in net worth between 2019 and 2022 for households headed by someone age 65 or older, according to research from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Households headed by someone 40 to 64 years old saw median earnings of $57,800.
Those headed by 18- to 39-year-olds saw the smallest gains in dollar terms — at $31,600 — although since they started from a lower base, they enjoyed the largest percentage increase.
Older people normally have more wealth than younger people, but larger benefits for older Americans in recent years have made the disparity “more pronounced,” according to one recent. paper co-authored by Lowell Ricketts, a data scientist at the St. Louis Institute for Economic Equity.
“Although it is important to note that this is not a zero-sum situation,” Ricketts said in an email. “An additional $32,000 for the typical family in the youngest cohort could improve financial stability and economic mobility.”
Just over half of seniors' gains in net worth came from non-financial assets such as home values, while retirement accounts and other financial assets contributed the remaining 48%.
And, seniors across the wealth distribution got a raise, though people at the top got the biggest increases. People 65 and older in the 90th percentile of wealth, with a net worth equal to or greater than 90% of the population, saw increases of about $893,000. Those in the 10th percentile by wealth received only an additional $1,181, although this was a 20% increase in percentage terms due to their low starting point.