U.S. household wealth rose by $1.08 trillion in second quarter

Household wealth in the U.S. accelerated in the second quarter, boosted by higher financial assets and rising real-estate values, figures from the Federal Reserve in Washington showed Friday.

Key Points

• Net worth for households and non-profit groups rose by $1.08 trillion, or 1.2 percent, to $89.1 trillion in April through June from the previous three months, according to the Fed’s financial accounts report.
• Value of financial assets, including stocks and pension fund holdings, increased by $715 billion.
• Household real-estate assets in net worth climbed by $416.7 billion; owner’s equity as a share of total real-estate holdings increased to 57.1 percent from 56.6 percent

Big Picture

A 1.9 percent gain in the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index in the second quarter, along with household wealth generated from rising house prices, signal Americans’ financial positions continue to strengthen in the eighth year of the expansion. A re-acceleration in wages would provide a further boost to balance sheets, giving consumers even greater wherewithal to continue spending.

The Details

• Household debt increased at a 4.4 percent annual rate last quarter, the most in two years.
• Mortgage borrowing rose at a 2.5 percent pace; other forms of consumer credit, including auto and student loans, climbed at a 6.4 percent rate, the most since the third quarter of 2015.
• Total non-financial debt rose at a 4.4 percent annual pace.
• Federal government obligations increased 5 percent, state and local government debt advanced at a 2.2 percent pace, business borrowing rose 4.1 percent

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