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10 Things Billionaires Won't Tell You About Their Fortunes
"We just get richer and richer"
In 2013, the wealth of the world’s billionaires reached a record high -- helped by 200 newcomers like Facebook (FB) founder Mark Zuckerberg. The 2013 Forbes Billionaires List names 1,426 billionaires with an aggregate net worth of $5.4 trillion, up a whopping 17 percent from $4.6 trillion last year. And that doesn't include royalty or, um, dictators. Of those, some 442 make their home in the U.S. (there are 386 in the Asia-Pacific region, 366 in Europe, 129 in the rest of the Americas and 103 in the Middle East and Africa combined, according to Forbes). The average net worth of each U.S. billionaire: $10.8 billion, up from $9.1 billion last year, according to a separate survey released this month by private wealth consultancy Wealth-X and UBS.
Meanwhile, the rest of the country’s net worth has actually fallen since the Great Recession -- and has yet to recover. Adjusting for inflation, real net worth per U.S. household hovered at $652,449 by the end of June 2013, according to the Federal Reserve, or about 95 percent of its 2007 level of $684,662. If that seems inordinately high, that's because the majority of U.S. households carry their net worth in their home. That average also is inflated by, well, millionaires and billionaires: In fact, around half of U.S. households have a net worth of no more than $83,000, a Pew Research Center’s analysis of 2010 Federal Reserve survey found.) And while ordinary Americans have seen their net worth fall since the recession, billionaires saw their net worth rise by over 50 percent from $3.5 trillion in 2007.
In 2013, the wealth of the world’s billionaires reached a record high -- helped by 200 newcomers like Facebook (FB) founder Mark Zuckerberg. The 2013 Forbes Billionaires List names 1,426 billionaires with an aggregate net worth of $5.4 trillion, up a whopping 17 percent from $4.6 trillion last year. And that doesn't include royalty or, um, dictators. Of those, some 442 make their home in the U.S. (there are 386 in the Asia-Pacific region, 366 in Europe, 129 in the rest of the Americas and 103 in the Middle East and Africa combined, according to Forbes). The average net worth of each U.S. billionaire: $10.8 billion, up from $9.1 billion last year, according to a separate survey released this month by private wealth consultancy Wealth-X and UBS.
Meanwhile, the rest of the country’s net worth has actually fallen since the Great Recession -- and has yet to recover. Adjusting for inflation, real net worth per U.S. household hovered at $652,449 by the end of June 2013, according to the Federal Reserve, or about 95 percent of its 2007 level of $684,662. If that seems inordinately high, that's because the majority of U.S. households carry their net worth in their home. That average also is inflated by, well, millionaires and billionaires: In fact, around half of U.S. households have a net worth of no more than $83,000, a Pew Research Center’s analysis of 2010 Federal Reserve survey found.) And while ordinary Americans have seen their net worth fall since the recession, billionaires saw their net worth rise by over 50 percent from $3.5 trillion in 2007.
"One million -- or 10 -- ain't what it used to be"
In a time when the median price of a home in Manhattan is just over $1 million, according to real-estate website Trulia, experts say that being a millionaire no longer means that you're rich. It could just as easily mean you own your own a home in New York or San Francisco, or have a vacation home on the Jersey Shore. "The word now doesn’t have as much power," says Charles Merlot, author of "The Billionaire's Apprentice: How 21 Billionaires Used Drive, Luck and Risk to Achieve Colossal Success." "In the eyes of the public, even $10 million is considered at the low end of high-net-worth."
For the global elite, keeping up with the Joneses, Gateses and Buffetts can require, at bare minimum, an eight-figure annual income. The online listing site Jameslist.com, a Craigslist for the super-rich, lists helicopters for a snip at $7 million-plus. (Failing that, one could always quietly take a share in one through a site like FlexJet.) For those who believe a Bentley is too -- well, obvious -- the fastest and most expensive production car in the world is the $2.4 million Bugatti Veyron Super Sport car. Billionaires who don’t want (or like) their neighbors can check out PrivateIslandsOnline.com, which has a collection of hideaways around the world to choose from. The 225-acre Katafanga Island in Fiji in the South Pacific is currently on the market with a price tag of $20 million.
In a time when the median price of a home in Manhattan is just over $1 million, according to real-estate website Trulia, experts say that being a millionaire no longer means that you're rich. It could just as easily mean you own your own a home in New York or San Francisco, or have a vacation home on the Jersey Shore. "The word now doesn’t have as much power," says Charles Merlot, author of "The Billionaire's Apprentice: How 21 Billionaires Used Drive, Luck and Risk to Achieve Colossal Success." "In the eyes of the public, even $10 million is considered at the low end of high-net-worth."
For the global elite, keeping up with the Joneses, Gateses and Buffetts can require, at bare minimum, an eight-figure annual income. The online listing site Jameslist.com, a Craigslist for the super-rich, lists helicopters for a snip at $7 million-plus. (Failing that, one could always quietly take a share in one through a site like FlexJet.) For those who believe a Bentley is too -- well, obvious -- the fastest and most expensive production car in the world is the $2.4 million Bugatti Veyron Super Sport car. Billionaires who don’t want (or like) their neighbors can check out PrivateIslandsOnline.com, which has a collection of hideaways around the world to choose from. The 225-acre Katafanga Island in Fiji in the South Pacific is currently on the market with a price tag of $20 million.
"You say evading, we say avoiding"
There's no data on whether the ultrawealthy shirk their responsibility to pay taxes more often than the average citizen, but incidents involving billionaires certainly garner more media attention — presumably because of the vast sums involved. "A lot of billionaires try to avoid paying taxes," says Friedman of Wealth-X. The latest to be named and shamed -- and face jail time: Ty Warner, 69, CEO of Ty, the maker of stuffed Beanie Babies and worth an estimated $2.6 billion, according to Forbes. "I apologize for my conduct," Warner told a U.S. District Court in Chicago in October. "I made a mistake. I'm fully responsible." He owes the government $53.6 million for failing to file a report on foreign financial accounts, one of the largest offshore-account penalties ever.
The line certainly gets blurred between illegal tax evasion and lawful tax avoidance. For the most part, Martiak says, "no-one is deliberately or intentionally avoiding paying tax." The very wealthy -- billionaires included -- also have the opportunity to pay a far smaller percentage of their income in taxes, since most of their income is from investments and, therefore, taxed at lower rates than wages and salary.
There's no data on whether the ultrawealthy shirk their responsibility to pay taxes more often than the average citizen, but incidents involving billionaires certainly garner more media attention — presumably because of the vast sums involved. "A lot of billionaires try to avoid paying taxes," says Friedman of Wealth-X. The latest to be named and shamed -- and face jail time: Ty Warner, 69, CEO of Ty, the maker of stuffed Beanie Babies and worth an estimated $2.6 billion, according to Forbes. "I apologize for my conduct," Warner told a U.S. District Court in Chicago in October. "I made a mistake. I'm fully responsible." He owes the government $53.6 million for failing to file a report on foreign financial accounts, one of the largest offshore-account penalties ever.
The line certainly gets blurred between illegal tax evasion and lawful tax avoidance. For the most part, Martiak says, "no-one is deliberately or intentionally avoiding paying tax." The very wealthy -- billionaires included -- also have the opportunity to pay a far smaller percentage of their income in taxes, since most of their income is from investments and, therefore, taxed at lower rates than wages and salary.
The rest of the list - read at your own horror - http://money.msn.com/investing/10-things-billionaires-wont-tell-you
Scumbags. The whole lot of 'em.
