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A New Look at Racial Disparities Using a More Comprehensive Wealth Measure

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Abstract

Most research measuring disparities in wealth by race relies on data that exclude resources that are disproportionately important to low-wealth and non-white families, namely defined benefit (DB) pensions and Social Security. This paper finds that once these resources are included, disparities in wealth between white families and Black and Hispanic families are substantially smaller and that they are not rising over time. The powerful equalizing roles of DB pensions and Social Security highlighted here are further motivation for maintaining their fiscal health. This paper also presents results on the wealth of Asian families—typically excluded from most research due to limited sample sizes. Including Asian families is important, however, because they are a rapidly growing segment of the population and they have become the highest-wealth racial group in the United States.

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  • Alice Henriques Volz & Jeffrey P. Thompson, 2021. "A New Look at Racial Disparities Using a More Comprehensive Wealth Measure," Current Policy Perspectives 92970, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.
    • Handle: RePEc:fip:fedbcq:92970
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Alvaredo, Facundo & Atkinson, Anthony B. & Morelli, Salvatore, 2018. "Top wealth shares in the UK over more than a century," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 162(C), pages 26-47.
    2. Alice Henriques Volz & Lindsay Jacobs & Elizabeth Llanes & Kevin B. Moore & Jeffrey P. Thompson, 2020. "Wealth Distribution and Retirement Preparation among Early Savers," Working Papers 20-4, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.
    3. Jesse Bricker & Lisa J. Dettling & Alice Henriques Volz & Joanne W. Hsu & Lindsay Jacobs & Kevin B. Moore & Sarah Pack & John Edward Sabelhaus & Jeffrey P. Thompson & Richard Windle, 2017. "Changes in U.S. Family Finances from 2013 to 2016: Evidence from the Survey of Consumer Finances," Federal Reserve Bulletin, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (U.S.), vol. 103(3), September.
    4. Jesse Bricker & Alice Henriques & Jacob Krimmel & John Sabelhaus, 2016. "Measuring Income and Wealth at the Top Using Administrative and Survey Data," Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, Economic Studies Program, The Brookings Institution, vol. 47(1 (Spring), pages 261-331.
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    7. Venoo Kakar & Gerald Eric Daniels & Olga Petrovska, 2019. "Does Student Loan Debt Contribute to Racial Wealth Gaps? A Decomposition Analysis," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 53(4), pages 1920-1947, December.
    8. Lisa J. Dettling & Joanne W. Hsu & Lindsay Jacobs & Kevin B. Moore & Jeffrey P. Thompson, 2017. "Recent Trends in Wealth-Holding by Race and Ethnicity : Evidence from the Survey of Consumer Finances," FEDS Notes 2017-09-27, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (U.S.).
    9. Alice M. Henriques, 2018. "How Does Social Security Claiming Respond to Incentives?: Considering Husbands’ and Wives’ Benefits Separately," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 53(2), pages 382-413.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    inequality; race; Social Security; pensions; saving; wealth;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D14 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Household Saving; Personal Finance
    • D31 - Microeconomics - - Distribution - - - Personal Income and Wealth Distribution
    • D63 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Equity, Justice, Inequality, and Other Normative Criteria and Measurement
    • E21 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Consumption; Saving; Wealth
    • G51 - Financial Economics - - Household Finance - - - Household Savings, Borrowing, Debt, and Wealth
    • H55 - Public Economics - - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies - - - Social Security and Public Pensions
    • H75 - Public Economics - - State and Local Government; Intergovernmental Relations - - - State and Local Government: Health, Education, and Welfare
    • I31 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - General Welfare, Well-Being
    • J15 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination
    • J18 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Public Policy
    • J32 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Nonwage Labor Costs and Benefits; Retirement Plans; Private Pensions

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