Young Families Lost Wealth While Older Americans Got Richer Over the Past Years, Federal Report Finds

The American Dream may be aging out of reach for younger generations. While Americans over 75 have accumulated significantly more wealth over the past three years, families headed by adults under 35 have seen their fortunes shrink, according to new data.

The Federal Reserve's Changes in U.S. Family Finances from 2022 to 2025: Evidence from the Survey of Consumer Finances shows that median net worth for families headed by someone 75 or older jumped 37% to $504,900. For families headed by someone under 35, median wealth fell 23% to $33,000.

"Families older than 75 saw substantial gains in both median and mean net worth (37 percent and 10 percent, respectively). The rise in net worth for the oldest age group is so large relative to younger age groups that, in contrast with the previous few survey years, families aged 75 or older had the largest net worth, exceeding levels by families that are nearly or recently retired (which saw some declines)," the report said.

That leaves the typical family in the oldest age group with more than 15 times the net worth of its counterpart in the youngest group. The divergence is especially notable because younger Americans had experienced substantial wealth gains earlier in the decade. Between 2019 and 2022, median net worth among families under 35 more than doubled, according to the Fed's previous survey.

Older Americans, meanwhile, have benefited from years of accumulating assets, including homes, retirement accounts, and stocks. The stock market's strong performance between 2022 and 2025 helped increase the value of investments, with gains disproportionately benefiting households that already owned substantial financial assets.

Families headed by someone 75 or older have now become the wealthiest age group in the survey. Their average net worth reached approximately $1.96 million, a figure influenced by especially affluent households.

Homeownership has historically been one of the principal ways American families build wealth. Yet higher mortgage rates and home prices have made entering the housing market more expensive for first-time buyers, while existing homeowners have continued accumulating equity.

"The homeownership rate was 66 percent in 2025, about unchanged from 2022. For families
that owned a home, the median net housing value (the value of a home minus home-secured debt) rose to $230,000 in 2025 from $218,900 in 2022," but "housing affordability remained near its historical low, as the median home was worth more than 4.5 times the median family income."

The generational divide is part of a broader pattern in which economic growth has produced sharply different financial outcomes. Across all American families, inflation-adjusted median net worth increased just 2% between 2022 and 2025, reaching $215,900. But families in the wealthiest 10% experienced a 31% increase in median wealth, reaching approximately $3.6 million.

At the opposite end of the economic spectrum, families in the bottom quarter of the wealth distribution saw their median net worth fall by more than half. But median family income rose 7% to $82,200, with lower- and middle-income households generally experiencing gains.

However, nearly 20% of families with debt reported falling behind on loan payments in 2025, compared with 12.2% in 2022. The share of families devoting at least 40% of their income to debt payments climbed to 8.6%, its highest level since 2013.