household income

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New Data Suggest a Robust Recovery Is on the Way

Household income increases by a record amount in March, thanks to stimulus checks

(Newser) - The US saw the largest monthly increase in household income in March since government records began tracing that metric more than 60 years ago. The record 21.1% surge, following a 7% decline in February, came after President Biden signed a relief package that included $1,400 stimulus checks. Those...

How 'Social Norms' Are Stressing Out Husbands
How 'Social Norms' Are
Stressing Out Husbands
new study

How 'Social Norms' Are Stressing Out Husbands

In America, women's pay is affecting men's mental health: study

(Newser) - American husbands don't mind their wives making money—but over 40% of their combined income? Then it's time for the man cave. So says a new study that measured male stress in roughly 6,000 US couples over a 15-year stretch, CBS News reports. Husbands in the study...

There's a Big Gap Between Richest, Poorest States
The 5 Richest,
Poorest US States

The 5 Richest, Poorest US States

Maryland's median household income is $37K more than Mississippi's

(Newser) - The median household income in the US climbed more between 2014 and 2016 than in any other two-year period on record. But that doesn't mean all Americans shared equally in the gains. Maryland residents enjoy a median household income that is almost twice that of people in Mississippi, per...

Recession Officially Over for Median Household Income

It just hit $59K

(Newser) - By at least one measure, the great recession that started in December 2007 was officially recovered from by the time President Obama left office, the New York Times reports. According to Census Bureau figures released Tuesday, the median household income in America in 2016 was $59,039—an increase of...

5 Richest and Poorest States
5 Richest and
Poorest States

5 Richest and Poorest States

Maryland is top, Mississippi is bottom

(Newser) - The median income in Maryland is a far cry from the median income in Mississippi, according to 24/7 Wall St . Its new ranking (based on this new 2015 Census Bureau data ) shows the richest and poorest states in the country, based on median household income in 2015. The top...

Middle-Class Income Sees Fastest Growth Ever: Report

Poverty rate fell too, though some say it's not enough to warrant a celebration just yet

(Newser) - For seven long years, the US has been struggling to break out of a sluggish economy after the Great Recession, Bloomberg notes. Some "remarkable progress" on that front came Tuesday, per the White House blog : A US Census Bureau report says median household income (adjusted for inflation) for 2015...

Study: Walmart Runs Better Stores in White Areas

Chain understaffs those in minority neighborhoods, say researchers

(Newser) - Ouch. A study out of Columbia University suggests that Walmart deliberately runs much better stores in white neighborhoods than in minority neighborhoods. The study found that stores in lower-income neighborhoods have considerably lower customer service ratings than those in wealthier ones. More specifically, the higher the percentage of black or...

Being Sole Breadwinner Stresses Men Out More Than Women

Women actually enjoy better mental health when they earn more than their husbands

(Newser) - It's better for everyone when women earn as much as or more than their husbands. So say researchers at the 111th Annual Meeting of the American Sociological Association in Seattle after looking at surveys of 9,000 married young men and women between 1997 and 2011 via the National...

30% of Americans Have Zero Savings

Household income hasn't kept pace with home prices and stocks bouncing back

(Newser) - The good news: American financial security jumped 3% this month. The not-so-good news: Three out of 10 of us have nothing saved for a rainy day. This according to Bankrate's June survey , which found that 29% of 1,000 US adults don't have readily available funds in checking,...

America's Richest, Poorest Cities

San Jose is No. 1 in terms of income; poorest is Detroit

(Newser) - Of the country's 25 most populated cities, San Jose has the highest median household income: near $77,000, compared to the national median of $51,000. San Jose's success is thanks in part to its high-tech culture. MarketWatch lists the five richest, with median incomes:
  • San Jose, $77,
...

Reasons to Bet Against a Double-Dip Recession
Reasons to Bet Against
a Double-Dip Recession
OPINION

Reasons to Bet Against a Double-Dip Recession

Data don't support hysterical headlines

(Newser) - Fears of a double-dip recession is running high, but economic data suggest that they are unfounded. Writing in the Wall Street Journal , Milton Ezrati of the money management firm Lord Abbett explains:
  1. The consumer is regaining strength: A 1.4% decline in retail sales for May gave rise to double-dip
...

Income=$0, and Some Food Stamps
 Income=$0, 
 and Some 
 Food Stamps 
TROUBLING TRENDS

Income=$0, and Some Food Stamps

States seeing double-, triple-digit growth among those with zero income

(Newser) - The recession has pushed millions from their homes and jobs, but there's a rising new class of economic victim—the American with zero monthly income surviving on food stamps alone. The New York Times examined states' data, and found that some 18% of food stamp recipients were in households with...

Stimulus Boosts Americans' Incomes
Stimulus Boosts Americans' Incomes

Stimulus Boosts Americans' Incomes

Consumers tuck funds away: Savings rate hits 16-year high

(Newser) - Incomes in the US got a big boost from federal stimulus dollars in May, the Commerce Department reported today. But weary consumers stashed most of that lucre away, sending the savings rate to a 16-year high. “Households are reverting to a more sustainable spending path vis-à-vis income,”...

Sweeter Perks Make Up for Falling CEO Pay

Free bodyguards, life insurance, travel rise despite public outcry

(Newser) - While average CEO compensation dropped 7% in 2008, packages of fringe benefits rose by the same amount, the AP reports. Higher-ups at big companies received perks that ranged from a personal car (complete with driver) to free life insurance to flights on the company jet. One CEO received $400,000...

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