The following are some of the highlights from the most recent study released by the US Census:
Real median household income fell between 2007 and 2008,and the decline was widespread.
Median income fell for family and nonfamily households, native- and foreign-born households, households in 3 of the 4 regions, and households of each race category and those of Hispanic origin. These declines in income coincide with the recession that started in December 2007.
The poverty rate increased between 2007 and 2008.
The percentage of uninsured in 2008 was not statistically different from 2007, while the number of uninsured increased between 2007 and 2008.
These results, though widespread, were not uniform across groups. For example, between 2007 and 2008, real median income was statistically unchanged for households maintained
by a person 65 years old and over but declined for households maintained
by people of all other age group categories. Additionally, the poverty rate increased for children under 18 and for people 18 to 64 but remained statistically
unchanged for people 65 and over.
Income Distribution
The lowest quintile of households had incomes of $20,712 or less; those in the second quintile had incomes of $20,713 to $39,000; those in the third quintile had incomes of $39,001 to $62,725; those in the fourth quintile had incomes of $62,726 to $100,240;
and those in the highest quintile had incomes of $100,241or more.
It is safe to assume that the data for 2009 would show the same trend i.e. a drop in median income and an increase in the poverty rate. Some even fear that the jobless recovery might even be with us at least for a portion of 2010.
19 comments:
I agree with the article that the economy will get worse and it will take time for the median to increase and the poverty rate to decrease. The part I disagree with in the article is that the economy will get better in 2010 I think it will get better in 2011.
With major economic reform still needed and an unemployment rate nearing 10 per cent. I believe there is a good chance that there will be an increase in the poverty rate and a decrease in median income. As for the jobless recovery, I think that it may take the better part of 2010.
This was a very interesting article. I think if we dont start fixing this problem now it will get even worse in the future. I also think if the median income increases and the poverty rate decreases then by the year 2012 we would start seeing the economy get better.
Since our economy has fallen into such a deep recession, it is definitely going to take some time to get us back onto the right track. I agree that poverty rates will most likely increase due to the fact that it has now spanned across children less than 18 years of age. Hopefully within the next year, the economy starts to gradually pick up and improve.
I think that what this article is saying is true, for example if the numbers of unemployment continue to increase than obviously there will still be a drop in the median income and i believe there will also be a drop in many other incomes because unemployment does only affect the median class. Also the poverty rate will continue to increase because if people keep losing their jobs than what money will they be living on? Probably not much. As for when everything will pick up again i'm really not sure i think its up to the government to see what they will do about all the unemployment.
I'm not at all surprised by the fact that median income was statistically unchanged for households maintained by people over 65 because generally speaking those households are operating on a fixed income. Retirement pay is, generally speaking almost impervious to the recession as it is contractually guaranteed.
The statistics on income distribution are somewhat surprising to me. I would have thought that the quintile with the highest incomes would have included many people with significantly lower incomes. What this says to me when I also consider the disparity between the low end and the high end of the third quartile, is that the so called "middle class" is not actually shrinking but is instead dividing. It seems that part of the "middle class" is being forced toward the low end of the income scale and part is being allowed to take advantage of market openings and gain wealth. I feel that this is generally a product of the differences between the cautious people and the opportunistic people. I think this shows that the key to economic improvement is continued spending in prudent areas.
I think that what this article is say is true. It's been proven before that things have to get worse before they can better and this case is no different. The Great Depression had to get to the worst of extremes in order to improve and get back to normal. I'm not saying that we're going to have a great depression but it will get very bad before it could get good again. For example the unemployment rate is going to keep rising until something is done. This will take a while but the economy will rise back up. It will take time, definitely into part of 2010, but the end is coming close.
This trend of increasing poverty rate and decreasing median income will definitely continue through 2010. The recession seems to be close to an end but I believe it will still take longer longer than a year and these trends will continue until the recession is over. I also find it interesting that people over 65 seem to be unaffected by the recession.
This article is most definitely accurate. There is no doubt that someone can try to say different. With this recession still on our hands things are still heading for the worst. I am not surprised that income for citizens 65 and older has not changed cause most people at that age are on a fixed income. There is nothing we can ask for more then getting back on track and seeing this change for the better but i would not be surprised if things are still going to get worst before they get better
Our economy has gotten to a point where it will definitely take some time to repair it. I think there is still a lot of work to be done and that there's a good possibility that we're well into 2010 until the unemployment rate is really recovered.
I agree with this article about the economy getting worst. The poverty rate has drastically increased since 2007.
Without economic reform the economy is not going to grow. As of the unemployment rate, I feel that if the government set up more jobs that by 2010 the unemplyment rate will decrease as well as the poverty rate.
Andrine Trotman
The point the article is trying to get across is true. We have already seen dramatic changes in our economy and if drastic measures aren't done to help us get out of the recession then the poverty rate and unemployment will still increase by 2010. I think the reason why the age group 65 and older is unaffected by this is because if not all, most of them should be collecting social security. This is a fixed income that cannot be changed unlike the other age groups whos income is not always guaranteed.
I have found this article quite interesting. I have never given it a thought as to how 65+ year old people are being effected by the recession we are currently in. While many households have been cutting back on spending, 65+ year olds have not,probably because they are no longer making money in a business, they are getting their money from social security. My personal opinion on the economy is that we will eventually get past this grueling recession and avoid a depression but it wont be in the next few years. I feel that our economy will fully recover in about 5 years because in recent history, times like this took alot longer than 3 or 4 years to get passed. While many are targeting for the recession to end sometime in 2010, i think it will fully recover more towards 2013 because history has been known to repeat itself.
-Joe La Rocca
At first I thought it was interesting that poverty rate of those over 65 had stayed unchanged; but as I thought about it the answer became clear. It is probably due to the fact that most receive social security money and are hardly affected. On the other hand those who are younger are affected since they do not have a fixed income and must struggle to find and keep a job.
i do agree that the economy will take some time to recover, however i believe that it will take longer than expected. With the current situation of countless jobs lost and the ever growing national debt, I believe that the economy needs to have some major reforms. I am also not surprised by the unchanged balance of people who are 65 and over, due to the fact that these seniors have either pensions, social security and retirement to rely on.
The facts stated in this article show that the median household income will continue to increase and the poverty rate will continue to decrease until our economy starts to grow again. I think our economy won't get on the right track until about 2014, not 2010 as the article states.
The economy must get worse before it gets better. I understand that it is a tough time for most people, but the only thing we could do at this point is hold on to whatever job we got. If people aren't getting paid enough at their job, they should look for another one as well as holding on to the first one. Quitting a job during a recession is highly not recommended.
I definitely agree with the article in the sense that the economy will continue to spiral downward, but not for much longer. As the country falls closer to the bottom i feel we are making leaps as far as finally climbing back out of the valley we have fallen into; starting in 2010
I agree with the article in the sense that the economy will get better in 2010, but I don't think it will get better until the end of 2010. I also feel that the poverty rate will increase and the median income will decrease until we see a change in the American economy
-Mike Castaldo
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