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Racial Wealth Gains and Gaps: Nine Facts About the Disparities

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Abstract

Every three years, the Federal Reserve System conducts the Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF)—one of the most detailed examinations of household wealth in the U.S. The two most recent surveys were conducted in 2019 and 2022, thus providing a valuable resource to researchers exploring wealth changes during the Covid-19 pandemic and recovery. This working paper draws from the SCF and other important sources to present data on the racial wealth gap and socioeconomic factors that impact the racial disparity in net worth between households by race and ethnicity. We demonstrate that the racial wealth gap continues to worsen, despite increased educational attainment, business formation, and homeownership.

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  • Anthony Barr & Darlene Booth-Bell & Kristen Broady & Lucas Cain, 2024. "Racial Wealth Gains and Gaps: Nine Facts About the Disparities," Working Paper Series WP 2024-03, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.
    • Handle: RePEc:fip:fedhwp:97790
    DOI: 10.21033/wp-2024-03
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Fenaba R. Addo, 2018. "Parents’ Wealth Helps Explain Racial Disparities in Student Loan Debt," In the Balance, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, issue 19, pages 1-3.
    2. Teresa Kroeger & Graham Wright, 2021. "Entrepreneurship and the Racial Wealth Gap: The Impact of Entrepreneurial Success or Failure on the Wealth Mobility of Black and White Families," Journal of Economics, Race, and Policy, Springer, vol. 4(3), pages 183-195, September.
    3. Mellow, Wesley S, 1981. "Unionism and Wages: A Longitudinal Analysis," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 63(1), pages 43-52, February.
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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • D31 - Microeconomics - - Distribution - - - Personal Income and Wealth Distribution
    • D63 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Equity, Justice, Inequality, and Other Normative Criteria and Measurement
    • E24 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Employment; Unemployment; Wages; Intergenerational Income Distribution; Aggregate Human Capital; Aggregate Labor Productivity
    • I24 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Education and Inequality

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