U.S. Millionaires' Ranks Tumble to Lowest Since 2003 as Economy Takes Toll

[marmar]

U.S. Millionaires’ Ranks Shrink to Lowest Since 2003 (Update2)
By Alexis Leondis


March 11 (Bloomberg) -- The millionaires’ club in the U.S. became more exclusive last year after a 38 percent drop in the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index helped thin their ranks to the fewest since 2003.

Families with a net worth of at least $1 million, excluding primary residences, declined to 6.7 million in 2008, a decrease from 9.2 million a year earlier, according to a survey of 3,750 high net-worth U.S. households conducted by Spectrem Group.

That is the lowest number of millionaires since 2003, when there were 6.2 million people in that category, the Chicago- based consulting firm said in a statement today.

“The culprit is not just the stock market, which we all know has dropped precipitously, but broad declines in the asset classes available to the nation’s wealthiest investors,” George H. Walper Jr., president of Spectrem Group, said in the statement.

Confidence in the world economy waned in March as the recession proved deeper than forecast and the U.S. mounted new rescues of financial institutions, a survey of Bloomberg users on six continents showed. The Bloomberg Professional Global Confidence Index fell to 5.95 from 8.5 in February. A reading below 50 means pessimists outnumber optimists.

About one-third of investors surveyed said their advisers had performed well during the economic crisis compared with 85 percent of investors who were satisfied with their advisers last spring. ........(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601213&sid=adXPm5eV874A&refer=home

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

1. Bummer.

:nopity:

[OhioChick]

5. May I join you?

:nopity:

[WoodyM]

2. Oh how my heart

bleeds for them!:sarcasm:

[soothsayer]

3. Poor little rich kids

[Burma Jones]

4. Gee Lovey, it should be far easier to park at the Yacht Club now....

[Rage for Order]

6. The knee-jerk, "f**k the rich" responses are silly

I've got news for you: the vast majority of the rich people you are pissed at, the really wealthy folks, weren't the ones tumbling from the ranks of the millionaires' club. A lot of the people who fell out of the millionaires' club are middle class, people who worked hard and saved for 40 years, are in their late 50's or early 60's, and were looking forward to retirement. Now their retirement isn't nearly as secure as it was, but apparently that's a good thing. :eyes:

[Mike 03]

7. Thank you, it is not a club. It also wiped out my niece's college education.

Thanks, I'm glad somebody realizes what a disaster this is. But I understand. I get it.

Frankly we're all in the same boat. I haven't been to a supermarket in three weeks.

We were providing for my sisters's bf who lost everything after suffering from a major head injury, including buying him a house. That is all in jeopardy now.

My other GF's fiance is losing his pension. He's a cop. His health is so bad I'm worried he will stroke out any day now. He's not even fifty years old and he'll be broke in a year without help.