Income, Wealth & Poverty

Despite an extended economic downturn, the public’s impression of whether the nation is economically divided remains relatively stable.

Despite an extended economic downturn, the public’s impression of whether the nation is economically divided remains relatively stable. While 45% say American society is divided between “haves” and “have-nots,” 52% say it is incorrect to think of the country this way. This is comparable to the balance of opinion a year ago. The percentage of […]

A new report from the Pew Hispanic Center explores and analyzes the poverty rate for Hispanic children. Latino children now outnumber white children in poverty for the first time, according to census data cited in the report.

The spread of poverty across the United States that began at the onset of the Great Recession of 2007-2009 and accelerated last year hit one fast-growing demographic group especially hard: Latino children.

The net worth of households in the U.S. fell sharply from 2005 to 2009, declining by 28%. But the drop in household wealth affected minorities disproportionately.

Pew Research Center reports can add context to the Census Bureau's release of 2010 data on U.S. income, poverty and health insurance coverage. These Pew Research Center reports, linked to in this article, have documented the impact of the Great Recession and shaky recovery on Americans’ wealth, work lives, personal finances and emotional well-being.

When the real estate market melted down, those hit hardest by the sharp drop in household wealth were blacks and Hispanics. But even while their wealth was being decimated, the political reaction among the nation's minorities has been surprisingly muted.

The median wealth of white households is 20 times that of black households and 18 times that of Hispanic households, according to a Pew Research Center analysis of newly available government data from 2009.

Median household wealth among Hispanics fell from $18,359 in 2005 to $6,235 in 2009—a 66% decline. This was larger than the decrease for black households (53%) and white households (16%), according to an analysis of newly-available Census Bureau data by the Pew Research Center's Social & Demographic Trends project.

A new Pew Research Center analysis, using Census Bureau data, estimates that the typical adult with a bachelor’s degree (but no further education) will earn $1.42 million over a 40-year career, compared with $770,000 for a typical high school graduate.