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Automotive News & Views Are gas prices fueling your pain? 
10042 messages, Last post on Jul 12, 2008 at 3:07 PM
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Replying to: fintail (Jun 02, 2008 7:27 am) It has to be a lot higher now than it was 50 years ago. There are more millionaires and billionaires percentage wise. Almost every company now offers 401K with some matching percentage. It is not the fault of the employers if a person decides having a cell phone is more important than saving $50 per month. This report says 1 out of every 125 Americans is a millionaire. NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - They're back! The number of millionaires in the United States surged 14 percent in 2003, to 2.3 million, according to the World-Wide Wealth of High Net Worth Individuals survey released Tuesday by Merrill Lynch and Capgemini. "High net worth individuals benefited from a strong stock market rally and solid, global economic growth," said James Gorman, president of Merrill Lynch's Global Private Client group. "They were able to capitalize on these trends despite a great deal of geopolitical uncertainty." In 2002, when the S&P 500 stock index dropped 22 percent, the number of high net worth individuals (defined as those with $1 million or more in investment capital excluding home equity) fell 100,000. The S&P rallied 28.7 percent in 2003. Worldwide, a half a million individuals joined the millionaire's club, which topped 7.7 million. Their overall wealth topped $28.8 trillion, a jump of 7.7 percent over the year before. |
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my 2000 Intrepid, which had been out of commission for about a month now because of random stalling and refusal to start, is now fixed, and seems to be running reliably...so far. So instead of running around in a '79 New Yorker getting 10-12 mpg, I should be getting about 18-20 out of the Trep. And I won't have to take out a second mortgage if I want to go on a trip. 
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Replying to: fintail (Jun 02, 2008 7:27 am) Where I work about 90% of the workers invest thru a 401K plan, and most of those people are in stocks somewhat. I would guess this holds true for most workers at companies over 50 employees. The reduced investing is what people do with their own money. I work in an area where there are 6 people making about $12-$15/hr; I know 3 of them fairly well. Do they invest in stocks outside of 401K's - I don't think so. Did they have the money to invest in stocks like energy funds - yes? 1 of them has bought a Harley besides his families 2 cars. Another has bought a new GM pickup to pull his camper. And another rents without a roommate, and just spent $2K on a HD TV (and of course had to upgrade his cable). I haven't seen any of these guys and many more with trucks and SUV's, crying yet. They come to work 5 days a week by themselves with these vehicles. |
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Replying to: gagrice (Jun 02, 2008 8:25 am) The overall affluent market – households with $500,000 or more – rose by 7 percent to a record 14 million. 14 million families with a net worth of half a million. That is about 15% of the families in this country. About 1% of USA families are worth more than $5,000,000. Cities with the highest percentage of millionaires: Los Alamos, N.M. 9.7% Naples/Marco Island, Fla. 8.6% BridgePort/Stamford/Norwalk, Conn. 7.2% Vero Beach, Fla. 7.2% San Jose/Sunnyvale, Calif. 6.9% Sarasota/Bradenton/Venica, Fla. 6.7% Easton, Md. 6.7% Hilton Head Island/Beaufort, S.C. 6.6% San Francisco/Oakland, Calif. 6.4% Honolulu, Hawaii 6.4%
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Replying to: gagrice (Jun 02, 2008 8:25 am) I'm sure there are many more millionaires today, as 2003 was not a particularly good year in the overall scheme of things. Sure, it looks great compared to 2001 and 2002. Looking back on my records though, it wasn't until late 2004 that I had fully recovered financially from the effects of the tech burst, the 9/11 tragedy, and the ensuing recession. But, 2003-2007 was a period of almost solid growth, so if people kept their money in the market and didn't make rash decisions, they should have done very well. I'd guess that if you had $600K back in 2003, and kept it fully invested in a decent mix, you'd probably be above the $1M mark today. But, the old adage is true...it takes money to make money. If you have $600K in 2003, you'd probably be sitting pretty right now, but if you only had $6K (and didn't add any more) then you're no closer to retiring now than you were 4 years ago. The gap between poor and rich just keeps getting wider, and even "middle class" ain't what it used to be. |
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Replying to: andre1969 (Jun 02, 2008 8:27 am)
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Replying to: gagrice (Jun 02, 2008 8:25 am) Income and wealth is consolidating, distribution is back to depression era levels. These are not trends that create a stable future |
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Replying to: lemko (Jun 02, 2008 8:40 am)  ) LeMans to the GM show, come hell or high water or $5.00 gas!
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Replying to: fintail (Jun 02, 2008 8:42 am) Yeah, it sure ain't what it used to be. I figure if I had a house that was fully paid off, I could probably quit my job and live off a million bucks, but I'd also probably have to have roommates for life. It wouldn't be an extravagant existence, either, and I'd probably run the risk of going back to work if we had a big enough economic downturn. Which is when it's usually harder to get back into the workforce!
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Replying to: andre1969 (Jun 02, 2008 8:44 am) What kind of fuel economy does your DeSoto get? There's an article on the 1955-56 DeSotos in the current issue of Collectible Automobile. Which of your New Yorkers will be in the Mopar Show?
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