Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, January 9, 1992 TAG: 9201090393
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: C7 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON LENGTH: Short
WEALTHY BENEFITED MOST IN '80S
A new government report says wealthy Americans benefited more during the rapid economic growth of the mid-1980s than poorer people.Families' median pretax incomes, when adjusted for inflation, were virtually unchanged from 1983 to 1989, according to Surveys of Consumer Finances conducted by the University of Michigan. "Median" means half the families surveyed earned more while half earned less.
While median income advanced just $100, to $24,400, the surveys said inflation-adjusted average income jumped $2,300, from $33,400 to $35,700.
The bigger increase for the "average" figure hints at a strong push from families with very high incomes.
"These findings suggest that incomes above the median grew faster than those below the median and that the distribution of family income became somewhat more concentrated among families with higher income," said an analysis published in the January Federal Reserve Bulletin.
The 1983 and 1989 surveys were sponsored by the Fed and various other federal agencies. The analysis was prepared by Arthur Kennickell and Janice Shack-Marquez of the Division of Research and Statistics.
"Changes in the overall real net worth of families - the difference between families' total assets and their total debts - were more dramatic than changes in family income," the authors wrote.
The surveys said average net worth rose more than 23 percent, from $149,100 to $183,700, during the six years of rapid economic expansion. Still, median net worth rose only 11 percent, from $42,700 to $47,200.
The surveys show mixed changes among various demographic groups.
"A moderate increase for white families was offset by a decline for non-white and Hispanic families," they wrote.