“嬰兒潮”一代雖然名字里有“嬰兒”二字,但他們?cè)诿绹?guó)富人中所占比例巨大,在某種程度上已經(jīng)變成了“富叔叔”。
疫情過(guò)后,最年長(zhǎng)的嬰兒潮一代(70歲以上,包括沉默的一代)看起來(lái)錢(qián)包鼓鼓。美聯(lián)儲(chǔ)(Federal Reserve)的最新數(shù)據(jù)顯示,自2019年底至今,這一群體的財(cái)富增長(zhǎng)了14萬(wàn)億美元。據(jù)彭博社報(bào)道,這些老年人的人口占比只有11%,如同弱小的大衛(wèi)一樣,但他們?cè)诮?jīng)濟(jì)中卻像歌利亞一樣具有巨大的影響力。他們掌握著美國(guó)30%的財(cái)富,創(chuàng)歷史紀(jì)錄。
這相當(dāng)于43.3萬(wàn)億美元,是25年前的六倍。而相比之下,55歲以下人群的總財(cái)富同期僅增長(zhǎng)了2.5倍。
此外,在疫情期間,70歲以上群體的家庭財(cái)富占比增長(zhǎng),但40至59歲年齡段(主要是X世代和較年輕的嬰兒潮一代)的家庭財(cái)富占比卻有所下降,現(xiàn)在已經(jīng)低于2019年的水平。讓人有些意外的是,40歲以下群體,即傳統(tǒng)觀念中經(jīng)濟(jì)上面臨挑戰(zhàn)的千禧一代和他們的Z世代后輩,財(cái)富占比在小幅提高之后在2022年趨于穩(wěn)定。雖然他們的財(cái)富占比略高于2019年,但卻依舊只有較年長(zhǎng)的嬰兒潮一代在1989年處于同齡時(shí)期的一半。
小部分人掌握了巨大的經(jīng)濟(jì)權(quán)力這個(gè)事實(shí),暴露出美國(guó)社會(huì)嚴(yán)重的財(cái)富差距,這種差距在疫情期間不斷擴(kuò)大,尤其是在經(jīng)濟(jì)動(dòng)蕩和惡性通脹(雖然在不斷降溫)令美國(guó)人深感疲憊的一年。這也表明,嬰兒潮一代在財(cái)富積累方面有強(qiáng)大的優(yōu)勢(shì),而其他代際卻沒(méi)有這種好運(yùn)。
現(xiàn)在的大多數(shù)年輕人在談到經(jīng)濟(jì)的時(shí)候,典型的觀點(diǎn)是依靠工資維持生計(jì),但一些嬰兒潮一代卻擺脫了這種現(xiàn)實(shí)的束縛。一方面,嬰兒潮一代的年齡意味著他們有更多時(shí)間去積攢財(cái)富。他們?cè)诔砷L(zhǎng)過(guò)程中遇到了適合股票和房地產(chǎn)投資的經(jīng)濟(jì)環(huán)境,這在疫情期間終于帶來(lái)了回報(bào),因此他們的財(cái)富積累過(guò)程更容易。而且嬰兒潮一代不僅壽命延長(zhǎng),工作年限也變得更長(zhǎng),他們繼續(xù)賺錢(qián)養(yǎng)家,一方面可以維持儲(chǔ)蓄水平,另一方面可以在生活成本高昂的時(shí)代保持競(jìng)爭(zhēng)力。
年輕人的經(jīng)濟(jì)狀況并不理想,但年長(zhǎng)的嬰兒潮一代大多處境不錯(cuò)
年長(zhǎng)的嬰兒潮一代經(jīng)歷了經(jīng)濟(jì)動(dòng)蕩,例如上世紀(jì)70年代的“大通脹”,但他們還是從經(jīng)濟(jì)中獲得了很好的財(cái)富積累的機(jī)會(huì)。美國(guó)銀行(Bank of America)的權(quán)五成(音譯)主持發(fā)表的一篇研究報(bào)告顯示,嬰兒潮一代是過(guò)去40年美國(guó)政府129萬(wàn)億美元“財(cái)富大轉(zhuǎn)移”的最大受益者。
嬰兒潮一代超過(guò)四分之一的財(cái)富與房地產(chǎn)等金融資產(chǎn)有關(guān)。嬰兒潮一代進(jìn)入房地產(chǎn)市場(chǎng)時(shí),抵押貸款利率低至3%,比后輩進(jìn)入市場(chǎng)的時(shí)機(jī)更佳。疫情爆發(fā)之后,美國(guó)房地產(chǎn)市場(chǎng)價(jià)值被高估,他們購(gòu)買(mǎi)的房子房?jī)r(jià)暴漲;一些嬰兒潮一代賣掉房子后獲得巨額利潤(rùn),然后再以全款買(mǎi)房,將首次購(gòu)房者擠出市場(chǎng)。
彭博社引用的美聯(lián)儲(chǔ)的另一份數(shù)據(jù)顯示,自2019年以來(lái),年長(zhǎng)的嬰兒潮一代的股票投資規(guī)模高達(dá)5萬(wàn)億美元。蓋洛普(Gallup)4月的調(diào)查發(fā)現(xiàn),在65歲以上的美國(guó)人中,有63%投資股票。而且2020年德意志銀行(Deutsche Bank)的一份報(bào)告稱,他們不需要為所投資公司的碳排放造成的環(huán)境破壞買(mǎi)單。這份報(bào)告還發(fā)現(xiàn),這個(gè)群體在教育上的支出少于千禧一代。后者要背負(fù)驚人的學(xué)生債務(wù)。
難怪OnePoll受National Debt Relief委托開(kāi)展的調(diào)查發(fā)現(xiàn),大多數(shù)千禧一代和Z世代表示擔(dān)心嬰兒潮一代對(duì)他們未來(lái)經(jīng)濟(jì)狀況的影響。畢竟,嬰兒潮一代承受了把破碎的經(jīng)濟(jì)留給千禧一代的罵名。
當(dāng)然,并非所有嬰兒潮一代都有豐厚的財(cái)富。與任何一代人一樣,嬰兒潮一代當(dāng)中同樣存在代際財(cái)富差距;許多嬰兒潮一代依舊生活拮據(jù),當(dāng)100萬(wàn)美元都不足以保證舒適的退休生活的時(shí)候,他們?nèi)栽谄D難維持生計(jì)。雖然許多人有股票市場(chǎng)收益,但資產(chǎn)與股市掛鉤,也讓許多人更容易受到市場(chǎng)下跌的沖擊。
因此一些人選擇了不退休或推遲退休。皮尤研究中心(Pew Research Center)的最新數(shù)據(jù)顯示,過(guò)去35年,仍在工作的65歲及以上的美國(guó)人占比幾乎翻了一番,達(dá)到近20%。該機(jī)構(gòu)調(diào)查發(fā)現(xiàn),這些老年上班族的收入高于前輩們同齡時(shí)的收入,這可以幫助他們?cè)黾迂?cái)富。但在疫情初期,大批人員離開(kāi)勞動(dòng)力隊(duì)伍,退休人員比預(yù)期增加200萬(wàn)人。
退休者數(shù)量如此龐大,而美國(guó)的退休系統(tǒng)仍沒(méi)有能力應(yīng)對(duì)他們的退出。日益衰老的嬰兒潮一代,無(wú)論離開(kāi)勞動(dòng)力隊(duì)伍還是離開(kāi)這個(gè)世界,都將產(chǎn)生巨大的連鎖反應(yīng)。畢竟,他們掌握了美國(guó)近三分之一的財(cái)富。(財(cái)富中文網(wǎng))
翻譯:劉進(jìn)龍
審校:汪皓
“嬰兒潮”一代雖然名字里有“嬰兒”二字,但他們?cè)诿绹?guó)富人中所占比例巨大,在某種程度上已經(jīng)變成了“富叔叔”。
疫情過(guò)后,最年長(zhǎng)的嬰兒潮一代(70歲以上,包括沉默的一代)看起來(lái)錢(qián)包鼓鼓。美聯(lián)儲(chǔ)(Federal Reserve)的最新數(shù)據(jù)顯示,自2019年底至今,這一群體的財(cái)富增長(zhǎng)了14萬(wàn)億美元。據(jù)彭博社報(bào)道,這些老年人的人口占比只有11%,如同弱小的大衛(wèi)一樣,但他們?cè)诮?jīng)濟(jì)中卻像歌利亞一樣具有巨大的影響力。他們掌握著美國(guó)30%的財(cái)富,創(chuàng)歷史紀(jì)錄。
這相當(dāng)于43.3萬(wàn)億美元,是25年前的六倍。而相比之下,55歲以下人群的總財(cái)富同期僅增長(zhǎng)了2.5倍。
此外,在疫情期間,70歲以上群體的家庭財(cái)富占比增長(zhǎng),但40至59歲年齡段(主要是X世代和較年輕的嬰兒潮一代)的家庭財(cái)富占比卻有所下降,現(xiàn)在已經(jīng)低于2019年的水平。讓人有些意外的是,40歲以下群體,即傳統(tǒng)觀念中經(jīng)濟(jì)上面臨挑戰(zhàn)的千禧一代和他們的Z世代后輩,財(cái)富占比在小幅提高之后在2022年趨于穩(wěn)定。雖然他們的財(cái)富占比略高于2019年,但卻依舊只有較年長(zhǎng)的嬰兒潮一代在1989年處于同齡時(shí)期的一半。
小部分人掌握了巨大的經(jīng)濟(jì)權(quán)力這個(gè)事實(shí),暴露出美國(guó)社會(huì)嚴(yán)重的財(cái)富差距,這種差距在疫情期間不斷擴(kuò)大,尤其是在經(jīng)濟(jì)動(dòng)蕩和惡性通脹(雖然在不斷降溫)令美國(guó)人深感疲憊的一年。這也表明,嬰兒潮一代在財(cái)富積累方面有強(qiáng)大的優(yōu)勢(shì),而其他代際卻沒(méi)有這種好運(yùn)。
現(xiàn)在的大多數(shù)年輕人在談到經(jīng)濟(jì)的時(shí)候,典型的觀點(diǎn)是依靠工資維持生計(jì),但一些嬰兒潮一代卻擺脫了這種現(xiàn)實(shí)的束縛。一方面,嬰兒潮一代的年齡意味著他們有更多時(shí)間去積攢財(cái)富。他們?cè)诔砷L(zhǎng)過(guò)程中遇到了適合股票和房地產(chǎn)投資的經(jīng)濟(jì)環(huán)境,這在疫情期間終于帶來(lái)了回報(bào),因此他們的財(cái)富積累過(guò)程更容易。而且嬰兒潮一代不僅壽命延長(zhǎng),工作年限也變得更長(zhǎng),他們繼續(xù)賺錢(qián)養(yǎng)家,一方面可以維持儲(chǔ)蓄水平,另一方面可以在生活成本高昂的時(shí)代保持競(jìng)爭(zhēng)力。
年輕人的經(jīng)濟(jì)狀況并不理想,但年長(zhǎng)的嬰兒潮一代大多處境不錯(cuò)
年長(zhǎng)的嬰兒潮一代經(jīng)歷了經(jīng)濟(jì)動(dòng)蕩,例如上世紀(jì)70年代的“大通脹”,但他們還是從經(jīng)濟(jì)中獲得了很好的財(cái)富積累的機(jī)會(huì)。美國(guó)銀行(Bank of America)的權(quán)五成(音譯)主持發(fā)表的一篇研究報(bào)告顯示,嬰兒潮一代是過(guò)去40年美國(guó)政府129萬(wàn)億美元“財(cái)富大轉(zhuǎn)移”的最大受益者。
嬰兒潮一代超過(guò)四分之一的財(cái)富與房地產(chǎn)等金融資產(chǎn)有關(guān)。嬰兒潮一代進(jìn)入房地產(chǎn)市場(chǎng)時(shí),抵押貸款利率低至3%,比后輩進(jìn)入市場(chǎng)的時(shí)機(jī)更佳。疫情爆發(fā)之后,美國(guó)房地產(chǎn)市場(chǎng)價(jià)值被高估,他們購(gòu)買(mǎi)的房子房?jī)r(jià)暴漲;一些嬰兒潮一代賣掉房子后獲得巨額利潤(rùn),然后再以全款買(mǎi)房,將首次購(gòu)房者擠出市場(chǎng)。
彭博社引用的美聯(lián)儲(chǔ)的另一份數(shù)據(jù)顯示,自2019年以來(lái),年長(zhǎng)的嬰兒潮一代的股票投資規(guī)模高達(dá)5萬(wàn)億美元。蓋洛普(Gallup)4月的調(diào)查發(fā)現(xiàn),在65歲以上的美國(guó)人中,有63%投資股票。而且2020年德意志銀行(Deutsche Bank)的一份報(bào)告稱,他們不需要為所投資公司的碳排放造成的環(huán)境破壞買(mǎi)單。這份報(bào)告還發(fā)現(xiàn),這個(gè)群體在教育上的支出少于千禧一代。后者要背負(fù)驚人的學(xué)生債務(wù)。
難怪OnePoll受National Debt Relief委托開(kāi)展的調(diào)查發(fā)現(xiàn),大多數(shù)千禧一代和Z世代表示擔(dān)心嬰兒潮一代對(duì)他們未來(lái)經(jīng)濟(jì)狀況的影響。畢竟,嬰兒潮一代承受了把破碎的經(jīng)濟(jì)留給千禧一代的罵名。
當(dāng)然,并非所有嬰兒潮一代都有豐厚的財(cái)富。與任何一代人一樣,嬰兒潮一代當(dāng)中同樣存在代際財(cái)富差距;許多嬰兒潮一代依舊生活拮據(jù),當(dāng)100萬(wàn)美元都不足以保證舒適的退休生活的時(shí)候,他們?nèi)栽谄D難維持生計(jì)。雖然許多人有股票市場(chǎng)收益,但資產(chǎn)與股市掛鉤,也讓許多人更容易受到市場(chǎng)下跌的沖擊。
因此一些人選擇了不退休或推遲退休。皮尤研究中心(Pew Research Center)的最新數(shù)據(jù)顯示,過(guò)去35年,仍在工作的65歲及以上的美國(guó)人占比幾乎翻了一番,達(dá)到近20%。該機(jī)構(gòu)調(diào)查發(fā)現(xiàn),這些老年上班族的收入高于前輩們同齡時(shí)的收入,這可以幫助他們?cè)黾迂?cái)富。但在疫情初期,大批人員離開(kāi)勞動(dòng)力隊(duì)伍,退休人員比預(yù)期增加200萬(wàn)人。
退休者數(shù)量如此龐大,而美國(guó)的退休系統(tǒng)仍沒(méi)有能力應(yīng)對(duì)他們的退出。日益衰老的嬰兒潮一代,無(wú)論離開(kāi)勞動(dòng)力隊(duì)伍還是離開(kāi)這個(gè)世界,都將產(chǎn)生巨大的連鎖反應(yīng)。畢竟,他們掌握了美國(guó)近三分之一的財(cái)富。(財(cái)富中文網(wǎng))
翻譯:劉進(jìn)龍
審校:汪皓
Despite their moniker, “baby” boomers account for an oversized amount of America’s riches, having become somewhat of a Monopoly Man.
The wallets of the oldest boomers (those over 70, a group that also includes members of the Silent Generation) are looking pretty plump post-pandemic. New Federal Reserve data shows that the cohort has become $14 trillion richer since 2019 came to a close. These seniors might be a David-sized representative of the population at 11% but they make up a Goliath-sized footprint in our economy, holding 30% of the country’s wealth—a record, Bloomberg reports.
That’s equivalent to $43.3 trillion, six times what it was 25 years ago. The total wealth for those under 55 pales in comparison, only 2.5 times bigger during the same time frame.
What’s more: As the share of the country’s household wealth for the 70-plus age group rose during the pandemic, it declined for those ages 40 to 59 (mainly Gen Xers and younger boomers)—it’s now smaller than it was in 2019. Somewhat surprisingly, it increased slightly before leveling off in 2022 for the under 40 age group—the stereotypical economically challenged millennials and their Gen Z successors. While their share is slightly higher than what it was in 2019, it’s still half of what it was for this group in 1989—when older boomers were their age.
The fact that such a small group of individuals makes up such a pronounced amount of economic power exposes the overwhelming wealth disparity that has grown during the pandemic, especially during a year where Americans feel an overwhelming sense of fatigue from a volatile economy and persistent (though cooling) inflation. It’s also indicative of the strong leg up boomers had in their wealth building journey, which other generations weren’t lucky enough to have.
While most of today’s youth speaks of an economy marked by working paycheck-to-paycheck, some boomers have escaped its claws. For one thing, their age means they’ve simply had more time to build wealth. But that was a lot easier to do when they grew up in an economy prime for investing in stocks and real estate, which ultimately paid off during the pandemic. And this group isn’t just living longer, they’re also working longer and continuing to bring home the bread, partly to sustain their nest egg and remain competitive during a a high cost of living era.
The kids might not be alright, but elder boomers mostly are
While older boomers have weathered their own economic turmoil, like the Great Inflation of the 1970s, the economy set them up pretty nicely for wealth accumulation. They were the biggest beneficiary of a $129 trillion “massive wealth transfer” from the government over the past 40 years, according to a Bank of America Research note led by Ohsung Kwon.
Just over a quarter of that wealth is tied up in financial assets like real estate. Boomers entered the housing market at a more opportune time than younger generations, thanks to a low 3% mortgage rate. When the pandemic rolled around, the houses they bought soared in value amid an overpriced housing market; some boomers sold for a huge profit and bought another house, edging out first-time homebuyers with all-cash offers.
Separate Fed data, cited by Bloomberg, also shows that older boomers have accumulated $5 trillion since 2019 in equity. Sixty-three percent of Americans over age 65 have money in stocks, a Gallup poll from April finds. And they won’t have to pay for the environmental damage caused by the carbon emission-releasing companies they invested in, per a 2020 Deutsche Bank report. The same reports finds they also spent less on education than millennials, who are dealing with staggering student debt.
No wonder most millennials and Gen Zers feel concerned about boomers influence on their financial future, per a survey by OnePoll on behalf of National Debt Relief. Boomers, after all, have borne the brunt of backlash for leaving millennials with a broken economy.
Of course, not all boomers are faring well. As with any generation, there’s an intergenerational wealth gap; many boomers are still living in poverty as they struggle to stay afloat during a time when a $1 million is no longer enough to comfortably retire on. And even though many have seen stock market gains, having assets tied up in the market has also left many more exposed to downturn.
That’s prompting some to unretire or delay retirement. The share of Americans 65 and older who are still employed has almost doubled since 35 years ago, reaching almost 20% of the cohort, per new Pew Research Center data. It found that they are earning more than previous generations at their age, helping to grow their wealth. Still, though, there are 2 million more retirees than expected after an early pandemic exodus from the workforce.
But the cohort is simply so big and our nation’s retirement system remains woefully ill-equipped to deal with their exit. Whether it be from the workforce or the world, aging elder boomers could leave a massive ripple effect when they depart. They’re worth almost a third of the wealth, after all.