More Americans than ever are becoming millionaires, with a new UBS report revealing that one in ten US adults now boasts a seven-figure net worth. The Swiss bank estimates that 23.8 million Americans were millionaires last year, a nearly 15-fold increase from 1.6 million three decades ago. Around 1,000 new millionaires were created each day in the US last year.
Heidi Barley, a 41-year-old from Orlando, Florida, recently joined the club after years of frugal living and investing. Growing up on food stamps and dropping out of college due to costs, Barley started investing a small pension payout and saving diligently. 'Did you know that we're millionaires?' she asked her husband last month. Despite the milestone, she still lives modestly, saving half her paycheck and reusing napkins and bags.
The surge in millionaires is driven by inflation, rising home values, and long-term stock market participation by average investors. However, the status is shifting. Michael Ashley Schulman, chief investment officer at Running Point Capital Advisors, says: 'It's no longer a backstage pass to palatial estates and caviar bumps. It's the new mass-affluent middleweight class.' Inflation has eroded the value of $1 million, which today is worth about half what it was in 1995.
The wealth gap remains stark: the richest 10% of Americans hold two-thirds of household wealth, averaging $8.1 million each, while the bottom 50% hold just 3%, averaging $60,000. Racial disparities persist, with Asian households outpacing white households in median wealth, while Black and Hispanic households lag behind.
Dan Uden, a 41-year-old IT worker from Rhode Island who also became a millionaire last month, echoes the sentiment: 'It's a nice round number but it's a point in a longer journey. It definitely gives you some room to breathe.' Finance professor Kenneth Carow notes that today's millionaires typically own stocks and a home, live below their means, and value education.
