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TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2009
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4

US Household Wealth Falls Record $5.1T

Combined five-quarter drop is nearly as big as US GDP for 2008

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(Newser) – The wealth of US households fell at a record pace in the last quarter of 2008, as drops in home values and stock prices accelerated, Bloomberg reports. Net worth for households and non-profits fell $5.1 trillion to $51.5 trillion, nearly twice the decline between the second and third quarters. The current net value of household wealth is at the lowest level in 4 years.

Since hitting a peak value of $64.4 trillion five quarters ago, household wealth has fallen steadily for a combined drop of $12.8 trillion, figures from the Federal Reserve showed. That’s almost as big as US GDP in 2008, which was $14.2 trillion.

A sign standing in the front yard of a house in Port St. Lucie, Fla., on Feb. 20, 2009, has been reduced by $95,000.
A sign standing in the front yard of a house in Port St. Lucie, Fla., on Feb. 20, 2009, has been reduced by $95,000.   (AP Photo/J Pat Carter)
A reduced price sign is shown at a house in Pittsburg, Calif.
A reduced price sign is shown at a house in Pittsburg, Calif.   (AP Photo)
A price reduction sale tops the sale sign of an existing home on the market in the south Denver suburb of Greenwood Village, Colo.
A price reduction sale tops the sale sign of an existing home on the market in the south Denver suburb of Greenwood Village, Colo.   (AP Photo)
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4 comments
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Robert_Dada
Mar 12, 09 2:24 PM CDT
Thank you George Dubya Hoover Reply
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radnip
Mar 12, 09 3:31 PM CDT
How much of that was really wealth and how much was fake money, i.e. debt? Reply
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SPH
Mar 12, 09 10:24 PM CDT
Five quarters ago?..... I forget who was in charge, W something,....Tax cuts work.....Deregulation works....Faith based initiatives work.... Reply
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nick
Mar 13, 09 7:48 AM CDT
Give W credit for reminding America that when you vote for president, how devastating it can be to your Country to cast your ballot for the guy you'd like most to have a beer with. Reply
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