As Americans collected government aid and saved, household wealth surged during pandemic

U.S. household wealth ballooned at a record pace during the pandemic as the government doled out unprecedented aid, Americans hunkered down amid widespread lockdowns and stock and home values soared, according to a Federal Reserve survey.

From 2019 to 2022, the median net worth of U.S. families surged 37% to $192,900, adjusted for inflation – the largest rise in the history of the Fed's Survey of Consumer Finances, which is conducted every three years.

Median income, meanwhile, grew a relatively modest 3%, and debt was fairly stable, the Fed said in the report.

During the pandemic, many households received financial windfalls from the government in an effort to tide families over amid widespread business shutdowns and 22 million layoffs. That included three rounds of stimulus checks, enhanced unemployment benefits and a pause in student loan repayments.

From 2019 to 2022, the share of families owning stocks increased from 15% to 21%, the largest on record. Median stock holdings fell to $15,000 from $29,000, but that’s because new stock owners held smaller portfolios than longstanding stockholders.

What is the US homeownership rate?

The share of families owning homes rose to 66.1% from 64.9%, and the median home value increased 24% to $323,200. During the pandemic, millions of Americans left cities and bought homes in suburbs or rural areas, often purchasing larger houses to accommodate the increased time they spent at home and their remote work set-ups.

The large wealth gains during the pandemic likely have been pared back since last year, a trend that wasn't captured in the survey. Stock prices have declined as the Fed has raised interest rates sharply to fight inflation and home values have fallen in many regions amid soaring mortgage rates.

Is the wealth gap increasing in the US?

During the pandemic, however, the gains were substantial and broad-based, lifting all racial, income, age and education and other groups. Families that didn’t finish high school notched the largest median gain in net worth at 60%. The net worth of Black families also rose 60%, the largest among racial groups, but their median wealth totaled $44,900 in 2022, still far below $285,000 for white people.

The bottom one-fourth of households by wealth experienced the largest jump, with their median net worth rising to $3,500 from $400. The pace of the increase was progressively smaller for richer households with the top tenth posting a 26% rise to $3.8 million. However, that still amounted to the biggest increase in dollar terms.

Among income groups, the wealth gain was largest (69%) for the top 80% to 90% of income earners and smallest (24%) for those in the bottom one-fifth.

Is the average income in the US increasing?

Meanwhile, from 2018 to 2021, median income rose a relatively modest 3% to $70,300. The gain captured government assistance such as enhanced unemployment and food stamp benefits but not stimulus payments, the Fed said.

A hefty 28% of families said their income was unusual in 2021, “reflecting the large imprint that COVID-19 and myriad pandemic-related policies left on the U.S. economy.” More families, however, reported lower-than-usual than higher-than-usual income, underscoring the pain inflicted by layoffs and a decline in working hours during the depths of the crisis.

Median income gains were concentrated among families with a college degree. For those without a high school diploma, income fell 10%. Income inequality widened as the bottom fifth of earners saw median income rise 5% while the top tenth notched a 15% gain.

Among racial groups, white families had the largest income gain at 16%. Black and Hispanic families posted slight decreases.

As Americans moved to more sparsely populated areas to escape the pandemic, the income gap between those living in cities and rural areas narrowed. Median income surged 14% for families outside metro areas, compared to 4% for those in metro areas.

Median net worth similarly increased more sharply for residents outside metro areas.