Posted on 03/15/2011 12:21:31 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
So it turns out millionaires get money envy too.
Apparently the benchmark for when the rich actually think of themselves as rich, is about $7.5 million, according to the results of a Fidelity Investments survey on the subject, says the NY Post.
Over 1,000 households were surveyed that had an average of $3.5 million in investable assets.
Less than half of those, approximately 42 % said they don't feel like they're rich, and would need about $7.5 million to make them feel: I'm wealthy.
Apparently those that did say they think of themselves as moneyed, "were younger on average and have a greater number of remaining years in the workforce," said the Post.
(Excerpt) Read more at businessinsider.com ...
I do not understand your comment - how do financial assets differ from investable assets?
In my view, a financial asset is money or securities in an account that you can take in cash at any time.
RE: I’d consider myself rich if I just made 1/4 of a million...
Well, good news... Obama and the Dems AGREE with you.
$250,000 is the threshold by which you are rich enough to have your taxes INCREASED.
Well, if you have your $7.5 million invested in stocks paying 3.33%, then your dividends are about $250K. Seems about right to me. You could invest for higher returns, but most rich guys prefer to accumulate untaxed capital gains.
RE: In my view, a financial asset is money or securities in an account that you can take in cash at any time.
What about rental properties that you own and from which you are getting current income ( and from which you can POTENTIALLY make money in the future should you sell it )?
Those are financial assets aren’t they?
I admit I don’t have any assets in that class, so I don’t have to think about this.
What I do when I calculate my net worth is not count the value of my dwelling, since I need a place to live. Everything else I have is in financial accounts. But there are many guys with businesses, rental properties, etc. The question is how to value them. If you had to sell immediately, as quickly as you could sell a stock, then the price would be on the low side. But they would definitely couunt as wealth, not consumption.
I think the original article is talking just about bank and brokerage accounts.
Reminds me of the time my (ex) wife’s purse was stolen with all of her credit cards. I didn’t cancel them immediately because the thief was spending less than she did.
/rimshot
Well, I am working on my second million.
I just gave up on making the first million.
RE: Well, I am working on my second million.
I just gave up on making the first million
I once spoke to a millionaire, he told me he became a millionaire after he got married. I asked him what he was before he got married, “A billionaire” he replied. :)
And I'm proof.
ML/NJ
“Wealth is relative, and to some extent the more you have, the more you realize how much more you need,” said Sanjiv Mirchandani, president of National Financial, a subsidiary of Boston-based Fidelity, in an interview before the survey’s release yesterday.That's pretty much what Elisa Dolittle's father learns in My Fair Lady. He could be irresponsible when he had nothing to lose - but once he had the possibility of staying out of the poorhouse, continuing to behave in a way that guaranteed that he would end up there was no longer an option.
Good thing that’ll never happen...unless I win the lotto.
Exactly. Rich is making less than you spend, and knowing you could spend more but realizing that you don't really want or at least need the extra junk and clutter.
RE: He could be irresponsible when he had nothing to lose - but once he had the possibility of staying out of the poorhouse, continuing to behave in a way that guaranteed that he would end up there was no longer an option.
Well, what can I say ? “Middle Class Morality” ain’t what it used to be anymore. Not in Britain and certainly, not in the USA.
Dang - just a po boy. Never mind; rice and cabbage are okay for me.
You know, so many people (and the government) don’t realize that many purchases are actually just a down payment on an obligation to keep spending money. e.g. cell phones, boats, large houses, pools, etc. I always look at the carrying cost.
I really am at a point in my life where I have more money and want less stuff. The only thing that I break this rule on is antique firearms. I make a point of only buying when I can get them for 20% or less of going auctin prices (which makes it fun for me), and they appreciate over time. Even at that, I find myself wanting to trim down the collection.
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