Bolstered by steady gains in the stock market, families headed by someone aged 75 or older are now America's wealthiest, while the youngest families saw their wealth decline in the past three years, a government report released Friday said.
The finding from the Federal Reserve's Survey of Consumer Finances underscores how robust stock market gains have made wealthier American families even richer since the survey, conducted every three years, was last completed in 2022. The median net worth of the richest one-tenth of American families soared 31% to $3.6 million from 2022 to 2025, the survey found. The median is the midpoint between the richest and poorest families.
Overall, the survey found broad gains in income, even after adjusting for inflation, which slightly reduced income inequality. Yet the proportion of Americans struggling with high debt payments and falling behind on their debt payments jumped, a sign of the toll that sharply higher inflation has taken on lower-income Americans.