Balance Sheets of Early Boomers: Are They Different From Pre-Boomers?

Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Vol. 27, No. 3, pp. 542-561, 2006

Posted: 1 Nov 2008 Last revised: 25 Jun 2010

See all articles by Michael S. Finke

Michael S. Finke

The American College

Sandra J. Huston

Texas Tech University

Deanna L. Sharpe

University of Missouri at Columbia

Date Written: August 12, 2006

Abstract

Nationally representative data are used to compare the magnitude, composition, and distribution of accumulated wealth of early boomers (born between 1946 and 1957) and pre-boomers (born between 1934 and 1945) at the same life cycle stage (ages 45-54, occurring in 1989 for pre-boomers and in 2001 for early boomers). Early boomers have accumulated greater mean wealth than pre-boomers at the same age, however median wealth did not change and net worth among lower-middle wealth groups declined. Multivariate analysis identified demographic change among those in the wealth distribution tails that indicates the increasing importance of education and race as predictors of wealth.

Keywords: Cohort wealth, Baby boomers, Net worth

JEL Classification: D12, D31

Suggested Citation

Finke, Michael S. and Huston, Sandra J. and Sharpe, Deanna L., Balance Sheets of Early Boomers: Are They Different From Pre-Boomers? (August 12, 2006). Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Vol. 27, No. 3, pp. 542-561, 2006, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1292500

Michael S. Finke (Contact Author)

The American College ( email )

Bryn Mawr, PA 19010
United States

Sandra J. Huston

Texas Tech University ( email )

2500 Broadway
Lubbock, TX 79409
United States

Deanna L. Sharpe

University of Missouri at Columbia ( email )

Consumer and Family Economics
Columbia, MO 65211
United States
573-882-9652 (Phone)
573-884-8389 (Fax)

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