Fortune | FORTUNE 前天 18:54
What it takes to be wealthy in America: $2.3 million, Charles Schwab says
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根据嘉信理财的调查,美国人认为需要230万美元才能被认为是富有的,略低于去年的250万美元,但仍比2021年的190万美元高出21%。调查显示,通货膨胀、经济恶化和高税收等因素导致人们认为实现财富的门槛正在提高。不同代际对财富的定义有所差异,年轻一代更看重生活方式和自由,而老一代则更注重安全感和资产传承。专家指出,真正的财富不仅仅是金钱,还包括幸福、健康、良好的人际关系和自由时间。

💰 调查显示,美国人认为平均需要230万美元才能被认为是富有的,而“财务舒适”的标准是83.9万美元。这一数字虽然略低于去年,但仍高于2021年。

📈 63%的受访者认为,由于通货膨胀、经济和税收的影响,如今要变得富有需要更多的钱,这反映了人们对经济环境的担忧。

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 不同代际对财富的定义有所不同。Z世代对财富和财务舒适的门槛较低,而千禧一代和X世代认为需要210万美元才能算富有,婴儿潮一代则认为需要280万美元。

🏡 年轻一代更看重生活方式和自由,而老一代则更注重安全感和资产传承,这可能与不同时代背景下积累财富的方式不同有关。

😊 专家强调,真正的财富不仅仅是金钱,还包括幸福、健康、良好的人际关系和自由时间,这反映了人们对生活质量的全面追求。

“If I had a million dollars… I’d be rich,” the Barenaked Ladies sang in their hit 1988 song.

At the time, a million dollars felt like a lot. But as inflation and tariffs have made essentially everything more expensive, that amount of money doesn’t feel like all that much at all. In fact, Americans now think it takes an average of $2.3 million to be considered wealthy, according to a Charles Schwab report released Wednesday.

The financial services firm surveyed 2,200 adults between the ages of 21 to 75 from April 24 to May 23, so a variety of generations offered their input. The average response for what it takes to be considered “financially comfortable” was $839,000. 

While the reported $2.3 million was a slight drop from last year’s Modern Wealth Survey at $2.5 million, it’s still 21% higher than the 2021 figure of $1.9 million.

Respondents also reported the bar to achieve monetary wealth feels as if it’s increasing and 63% said it feels like it takes more money to be wealthy today compared to last year, citing the impacts of inflation, a worsening economy, and higher taxes.

Brad Clark, founder and CEO of financial advisory firm Solomon Financial, said these sentiments are relatively reflective of what he hears from his clients. There are a large number of millionaires in the U.S. when you factor in all assets, he told Fortune, but this typically includes their home, meaning their investable assets are typically less than $1 million.

“With so many middle-class Americans being considered millionaires, it stands to reason that the average individual would consider $2.3 million to be wealthy, as it may seem out of reach,” Clark said. 

But experts said being considered wealthy doesn’t necessarily equate being opulent in all life choices. 

The $2.3 million figure is “not luxury for everyone, but security. It’s wanting to have a house, retire well, have family, and have one’s time,” William “Bill” London, a lawyer and partner at Kimura London & White LLP who routinely handles high-net-worth families and individuals in divorces and estate cases, told Fortune. “Affluence is not about excess, but about reducing anxiety.”

What it means to be wealthy for different generations

The Charles Schwab survey showed when compared with other generations, Gen Z tends to set lower thresholds for what it takes to be wealthy and financially comfortable— $1.7 million and $329,000, respectively. Meanwhile, millennials and Gen Xers say it takes $2.1 million to be wealthy, and $2.8 million for baby boomers. 

That may have to do with how exactly different generations define wealth. Earlier generations like baby boomers more frequently frame wealth in terms of security, London said, with a focus on property, pension, and assets that get passed down. Younger generations, on the other hand, more frequently consider experiences, freedom from debt, and lifestyle decisions, he added.

“More of my younger clients are more concerned about breathing space and time than they are about a big house or pricey assets,” London said. “Their definition of wealth is more about lifestyle than about acquisition.”

But it could also be the fact younger generations have a harder time acquiring large assets like a home due to comparatively high mortgage rates and home prices. 

“Millennials and Gen Z are justifiably pessimistic about the prospects of home ownership, which historically was the most common way for Americans to build wealth,” Markus Schneider, associate professor and chair of the economics department at University of Denver, told Fortune. “There are lots of reasons why millennials and Gen Z may feel less secure about the world than the boomers did when they were the same age, and that may also impact how they feel about their wealth.”

Despite the differences among generations, experts agree it takes more than money to feel wealthy—and it shows in the Charles Schwab report. Some of the most popular personal definitions of wealth include happiness, physical health, mental health, quality of relationships, accomplishments, amount of free time, and material possessions.

“You don’t have to look too far to find a study that shows how depressed ultra-wealthy people often are. If you are defining wealth solely based on dollars, you likely will be disappointed when you achieve the number,” Clark said. “True wealth is being able to use your assets to free up your time to benefit those around you. The happiest people tend to be those with a greater purpose in life.”

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财富 通货膨胀 代际差异 幸福
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