Poll: Is your net worth (by age) more than the median and average U.S. amounts?

[Jingthing]

To answer this poll accurately you need to first calculate your net worth (basically all assets minus all liablities) and then compare to the chart in this link.

 

Age of head of family	Median net worth	Average net worth
Less than 35	$13,900	$76,300
35-44	$91,300	$436,200
45-54	$168,600	$833,200
55-64	$212,500	$1,175,900
65-74	$266,400	$1,217,700
75+	$254,800	$977,600

 

The Average Net Worth by Age: How Does Yours Compare? - NerdWallet

 

Note the massive difference between median and average amounts.

 

In case you don't understand what those terms mean:

Average Vs Median: What's The Difference? » Differencess

 

I think the median figure is much more relevant as outliers like Elon Musk massively distort the averages.

 

Note there is a net worth calculator in the link. 

[sidjameson]

If ever there was a thread to encourage coc fighting this will be it.

[sidjameson]

Inflation linked pension is or isn't counted as an asset?

[Jingthing]

8 minutes ago, sidjameson said:

Inflation linked pension is or isn't counted as an asset?

No.

The money from any source that you currently have banked or invested is. 

[Dan O]

Worthless poll unless your from the usa

[nigelforbes]

26 minutes ago, Dan O said:

Worthless poll unless your from the usa

Why, it's easy enough to convert from any currency, to USD. If from Pounds to USD, multiply by 1.20. It's a good and interesting poll.

[BananaStrong]

Zillow put my house over 1,000,000 last year.   I don't check every year, why?????  Of course I don't have a mortgage.  Why would I?

 

The BIGGEST problems you humans have is thinking MONEY is everything and cannot even begin to compare anything else.   That is why your species will fail.    

 

It's never an intelligent post, only about money.   Almost never about health (unless negative), only about money.

 

Sad.

 

Spending your life obsessed with money will absolutely get you no money.  or happiness. or money and then no happiness. 

 

read Philosophy.    just for 1 minute!!!!!    try it.      the MIND.     It's powerful if you use it.   lol

 

 

[proton]

No wonder some Thais think all foreigners are rich, they seem to be on here. Nowhere near these amounts for my age.

[Dan O]

42 minutes ago, nigelforbes said:

Why, it's easy enough to convert from any currency, to USD. If from Pounds to USD, multiply by 1.20. It's a good and interesting poll.

Because the average and median ranges are specific to usa in that link. Converting your worth only shows a comparison to the USA not the country you live in or Thailand 

[Mike Teavee]

24 minutes ago, BananaStrong said:

Zillow put my house over 1,000,000 last year.   I don't check every year, why?????  Of course I don't have a mortgage.  Why would I?

 

The BIGGEST problems you humans have is thinking MONEY is everything and cannot even begin to compare anything else.   That is why your species will fail.    

 

It's never an intelligent post, only about money.   Almost never about health (unless negative), only about money.

 

Sad.

 

Spending your life obsessed with money will absolutely get you no money.  or happiness. or money and then no happiness. 

 

read Philosophy.    just for 1 minute!!!!!    try it.      the MIND.     It's powerful if you use it.   lol

 

 

And all of that is very easy to say if you have money, if you don't then Philosophy (as much as I love it) is going to be a long way down your list of priorities.

 

To put it simply.... Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs 

 

 

 

[simon43]

My net worth isn't even 1% of the average for my age band in that table.

 

Yet I manage to have a very happy life in Thailand.

 

Despite having few assets and $$$, I have a large pe-nis, definitely bigger than most on this forum ????

[nigelforbes]

3 minutes ago, Dan O said:

Because the average and median ranges are specific to usa in that link. Converting your worth only shows a comparison to the USA not the country you live in or Thailand 

Given this is a Thai based forum, my interpretation of the poll is that it will show the relative wealth of Thailand based expats, not relative to any particular country but relative to other expats in Thailand. A US based median and average seems like reasonable enough benchmark as any to use for this purpose since it's indicative and not scientific. Of course, if a poster lives in a bed sit in Burnley and doesn't visit Thailand, their input may not be relevant.

[Enoon]

 

48 minutes ago, BananaStrong said:

Zillow put my house over 1,000,000 last year.   I don't check every year, why?????  Of course I don't have a mortgage.  Why would I?

 

The BIGGEST problems you humans have is thinking MONEY is everything and cannot even begin to compare anything else.   That is why your species will fail.    

 

It's never an intelligent post, only about money.   Almost never about health (unless negative), only about money.

 

Sad.

 

Spending your life obsessed with money will absolutely get you no money.  or happiness. or money and then no happiness. 

 

read Philosophy.    just for 1 minute!!!!!    try it.      the MIND.     It's powerful if you use it.   lol

 

 

 

Thanks for letting everyone know that your house is worth +1 mill, that you're "all right Jack".......and on your way to ultimate understanding.

 

Did you buy it with the donations sent to your TV evangelist ministry?

 

 

[BritManToo]

20 minutes ago, simon43 said:

My net worth isn't even 1% of the average for my age band in that table.

 

Yet I manage to have a very happy life in Thailand.

 

Despite having few assets and $$$, I have a large pe-nis, definitely bigger than most on this forum ????

Yep, same for me, I have no assets, only income.

As for home value, not really relevant if you're a married guy, it's her home not yours.

As I already found out in the UK.

 

As far as I can see a guys worth is down to his income and money in the bank, not some fantasy price his womans house may be worth if she allowed him to sell it and keep the money. And not his bitcoin collection, if he hasn't cashed out.

[Mike Teavee]

1 hour ago, proton said:

No wonder some Thais think all foreigners are rich, they seem to be on here. Nowhere near these amounts for my age.

I guess most foreigners are rich compared to the average Thai.

 

Can I ask which age bracket you fall into? Don't mean to be rude but I think if you're on the younger/older ends of the scale your "Net Worth" is probably less important than if you're in one of the middle age groups. 

 

By this I mean if you're young & still working then you're (obviously) still earning a salary & if you're old then you're probably getting a regular income from pension(s) but if you're in the middle (like me) & not working then you're likely to be living off of your assets. 

 

 

 

 

I retired at 53 (56 now so still a few years until I get my pension) & wouldn't have even considered doing so if I didn't think I had enough disposable assets to live comfortably on... But even now I'm still not sure I have enough.

 

 

 

if they made this movie in Thailand I think it would be renamed to No country for poor men...

 

 

 

[BritManToo]

6 minutes ago, Mike Teavee said:

I retired at 53 (56 now so still a few years until I get my pension) & wouldn't have even considered doing so if I didn't think I had enough disposable assets to live comfortably on... But even now I'm still not sure I have enough.

Same for me, divorced and retired to Thailand age 52.

I spent all my remaining assets getting from age 52 to pension age 64 without working.

[nigelforbes]

3 minutes ago, Mike Teavee said:

I guess most foreigners are rich compared to the average Thai.

 

Can I ask how old you? Don't mean to be rude but I think if you're on the younger/older ends of the scale your "Net Worth" is probably less important than if you're in one of the middle age groups. 

 

By this I mean if you're young & still working then you're (obviously) still earning a salary & if you're old then you're probably getting a regular income from pension(s) but if you're in the middle (like me) & not working then you're likely to be living off of your assets. 

 

 

 

 

I retired at 53 (56 now so still a few years until I get my pension) & wouldn't have even considered doing so if I didn't think I had enough disposable assets to live comfortably on... But even now I'm still not sure I have enough.

 

 

 

if they made this movie in Thailand I think it would be renamed to No country for poor men...

 

 

 

If it helps.....I retired here at 52 and believed I had sufficient assets to where pension income was not important to the equation. The financial crisis in 2007/2008 changed my landscape. Ultimately I found different ways to invest and make a return but the closer I got to pensionable age, the more important pension income became. I eventually resorted to doing a couple of things I had never planned on, one was becoming an overseas landlord, another was investing more heavily in equities. If I were to do it all over again I I think I would have a) retired later b) gone into wealth preservation mode earlier, and c) diversified even further and wider than I had previously imagined, even if it meant testing my risk appetite threshold. Ultimately you have to think what would happen if the unthinkable  happened, which is not necessarily a great way to spend retirement! But ultimately ultimately, it will work out OK, albeit differently perhaps to what you first imagined.

[1FinickyOne]

4 hours ago, Jingthing said:

I think the median figure is much more relevant as outliers like Elon Musk massively distort the averages.

and inliers like all the homeless, do they get counted? does anyone know or care how many exist? 

[1FinickyOne]

7 minutes ago, nigelforbes said:

even if it meant testing my risk appetite threshold. Ultimately you have to think what would happen if the unthinkable  happened, which is not necessarily a great way to spend retirement!

I retired at 48 and navigate the waters as best I can - out of equities for the last 2 years... now in T-Bills mostly... and cash as interest on my accounts return... I try to act responsibly and not worry too much, but, what to do is probably an everyday thought...

 

Who worries more about money, people with little or people w/a lot? 

[BananaStrong]

1 hour ago, Mike Teavee said:

To put it simply.... Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs 

Thai chat room………lowest.

 

if you are posting, you have time.   
 

age 20 to 50……..amass wealth.  Easy.

 

if you can’t, fix mental problems.   Do that first.

 

if you’re posting, you have decided not to make money and post instead.

 

up to you.

 

I’d never post if poor…..I’d be making money 

[Mike Teavee]

21 minutes ago, BananaStrong said:

Thai chat room………lowest.

 

if you are posting, you have time.   
 

age 20 to 50……..amass wealth.  Easy.

 

if you can’t, fix mental problems.   Do that first.

 

if you’re posting, you have decided not to make money and post instead.

 

up to you.

 

I’d never post if poor…..I’d be making money 

But I did post (as did you) so I guess that means I'm (we're) not poor... & just because I'm posting doesn't mean I'm not making money (Passive Income).

 

TBH I think a lot of people focus solely on the financial side of retirement (which is obviously critical) & not what they'll do with their lives when they retire... First time I tried retirement (40), I was climbing the walls after 3 weeks so went back to work & focused on. building a life outside of work (Which for me was to travel, so I got a job in Singapore).  

 

 

 

 

 

[nigelforbes]

3 minutes ago, Mike Teavee said:

But I did post (as did you) so I guess that means I'm (we're) not poor... & just because I'm posting doesn't mean I'm not making money (Passive Income).

 

TBH I think a lot of people focus solely on the financial side of retirement (which is obviously critical) & not what they'll do with their lives when they retire... First time I tried retirement (40), I was climbing the walls after 3 weeks so went back to work & focused on. building a life outside of work (Which for me was to travel, so I got a job in Singapore).  

 

 

 

 

 

Classic Type A personality, I sympathise.

[4MyEgo]

In short, I have enough to survive until I die, last time I checked, that was in 39 years and I definitely know I won't last that long.

 

Does that qualify me as having a bigger one than you, they say size doesn't matter, but it does ????

 

 

[nigelforbes]

4 minutes ago, 4MyEgo said:

In short, I have enough to survive until I die, last time I checked, that was in 39 years and I definitely know I won't last that long.

 

Does that qualify me as having a bigger one than you, they say size doesn't matter, but it does ????

 

 

I have enough cash on hand to last 7.2 years at my average burn rate, excluding income, before I have to start selling assets. Most importantly, I have enough THB cash on hand to last the next 4.2 years, which is by far the more important number to me. Statistically my cash will outlive me which my wife thinks is great! :))

[Mike Teavee]

2 minutes ago, nigelforbes said:

Classic Type A personality, I sympathise.

Too true, but I am trying to mellow with old age ???? 

 

I feel your pain retiring just before the Global Financial crisis (2007/2008)... 1st time I retired (40) was in 2006 & I was lucky to get back into work (IT for Global Banks) just before the banks stopped hiring, the 2nd time (48) I was lucky to get back into work before Brexit & (again) the banks stopped hiring, 3rd (& final) time December 2019 just before Covid hit... Not the best 1st year of retirement as all of my dividend income for the 1st year were cancelled or cut...

 

Some <deleted> just didn't want me to retire! 

[nigelforbes]

2 minutes ago, Mike Teavee said:

Too true, but I am trying to mellow with old age ???? 

 

I feel your pain retiring just before the Global Financial crisis (2007/2008)... 1st time I retired (40) was in 2006 & I was lucky to get back into work (IT for Global Banks) just before the banks stopped hiring, the 2nd time (48) I was lucky to get back into work before Brexit & (again) the banks stopped hiring, 3rd (& final) time December 2019 just before Covid hit... Not the best 1st year of retirement as all of my dividend income for the 1st year were cancelled or cut...

 

Some <deleted> just didn't want me to retire! 

We both operated in a similar space, we must exchange notes, I'll PM later.

[LaosLover]

I'm 70 and have enough funds to last 39 more years. My 10 year's younger wife is 59. 

 

I'm going to have to take some Tahitian cruises and upgrade my polo shirts to Izod's. At the very least.

[mistral53]

The problem is not that we are too poor, we are too old! Based on this table it is obvious most of us would do very well if we were a lot younger..........like less than 35 yo!

 

I also agree that there should be a column for the size of the dong of the head of the family - please amend, it would infuse some badly needed perspective to what is important in life!

[pomchop]

The obsession with money.  I have a lot of wealthy friends who are still working in mid 70's who seem to want to tell me how very lucky i was/am to have retired at 52 and been roaming the world for past 23+ years.  I have a fraction of the net worth of many of these but would not trade my memories and freedom with hardly any of them.  Of course I understand that many love their jobs just as i loved mine but if that job is preventing you from "living your dreams" then just maybe it is time to give it up or at least cut back and get on with living the dreams.

 

  Personally it seems kind of sad to me that some just cannot give up on the idea that they need to make more more more and keep working til they drop dead but never got around to their bucket list because of their greed.  There is more to life than how much $$ you have......would you rather lie on your death bed and say wow i have xx millions of dollars in the bank still...or would you rather say i did just about every item on my bucket list and would not trade those memories for a miilion more bucks left behind.

 

Fortunately i long ago learned to live within my means and to spend my $$ on things that bring satisfaction to me rather than living my life trying to impress anyone with my house, cars, clothes, etc.  Over the years i have been called cheap, tight, frugal, you name it for simply living within my means.  Of course i can think of many similar slurs to use on some of my money obsessed friends like greedy, stupid, pretentious etc.   Millions of people seem unable to distinguish between what they need and what they want and end up broke or working way too long as a result.  

 

 I have enough to live the rest of my life not extravagantly but quite comfortably.  My motto for 23 years of retirement re trips adventures etc is "If not now, when?"  It has worked well for me as you get older you do start to realize that health is number one and there are a lot of things that maybe you've been wanting to do for a long time but now you are simply too old or have health problems that say no way.

 

My two baht worth.

 

 

[KhunLA]

The chart is kind of irrelevant.  As an example, I made more than the medium in one year, 1 market trade in this bracket.  I do tend to spend money on my smile.

So net worth now is less than the chart, 'average' for my present age, 68, I think, but I also have basically no mandatory monthly bills, besides food, and more income than I can realistically spend.  If my income stopped, I wouldn't have any financial worries for the rest of life.

 

Having more than I need, or what wife & kid should need for the rest of their lives, living in TH, is enough.

 

Friends ask why I stopped making money ... because money for me, is not a priority.  Having more than enough, and my smile is my priority.  Bigger bank account or more assets don't do anything for me.  Having time to enjoy what I have is more important.  I got off the hamster wheel 23 years ago.  Not that I actually spent much time on it.

 

Work smarter, not harder or longer.