comments

The coming millionaire boom

May 9, 2011: 2:26 AM ET
chart-millionaire-household2.gif

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Despite the Great Recession, which wiped out $15.5 trillion in household wealth in the United States alone, the number of millionaires in this country and abroad will grow rapidly over the next decade.

In the U.S., the total number of families with a net worth of over $1 million, including real estate, will double by 2020, according to a report by the Deloitte Center for Financial Services.

Overall, the U.S. and Europe have the greatest concentrations of wealth than any other region, although emerging markets are narrowing the gap.

China will lead the way in millionaire growth, the report said, followed by Brazil and Russia.

By 2020, China and South Korea will rank in the top 10 of countries with the greatest total number of families worth more than a million dollars.

"There is going to be very fast growth, but it will take a lot longer to reach anything like the wealth in the developed world," said Andrew Freeman, lead author of the report. (Calculator: When will you be a millionaire?)

With 10.5 million, the U.S. has -- by far -- the greatest number of millionaire households in the world, despite the financial crisis and ensuing recession which knocked more than 3 million millionaire families off the map between 2006 and 2008.

The number of millionaire households is expected to return to pre-crisis levels by 2015 and reach 20.6 million in 2020, maintaining the U.S.'s position in the top spot.

By then, 43% of the world's wealth held by millionaire households will be in the U.S., up slightly from 42% this year, the report said.

Japan is expected to rank a distant second, with 8.6 million millionaire households in 2020 and 9% of the world's wealth.

China is expected to be No. 7, with 2.5 million millionaire households in 2020 and 4% of the world's wealth.

America's wealthiest (and poorest) states

Within the U.S., California will likely have the most number of wealthy households by 2020, while Wyoming is forecast to have the fewest. New Jersey will have the highest density of millionaires with a quarter of all households projected to be valued at more than $1 million.

The Deloitte report looked at 25 economies worldwide. The definition of wealth included financial assets, such as stocks, bonds and other investments and non-financial assets like real estate, automobiles and art. It was sponsored by the Deloitte Center for Financial Services and conducted with Oxford Economics. To top of page

Most Popular
Europe debt crisis and jobs numbers to drive stocks
 
Farmers hit the jackpot in Kansas oil boom
 
Apple to DOJ: Bite me
 
Postal Service offers $15,000 buyouts to 45,000 mail handlers
 
Summer gas prices - as good as they'll get
 
Just the Facts
How big is our big deficit?

What measures -- spending cuts, tax hikes, or both -- are needed to tame the budget deficit? Money magazine looks at how we got here and how big our debt really is.

What you need to know about the budget

Politicians are arguing fiercely over the proper size of the government. Money magazine looks at the facts -- how much we spend and what we spend it on.

Overnight Avg Rate Latest Change Last Week
30 yr fixed3.80%3.80%
15 yr fixed3.09%3.11%
5/1 ARM2.65%2.69%
30 yr refi3.77%3.86%
15 yr refi3.09%3.21%
Rate data provided
by Bankrate.com
View rates in your area
 
Find personalized rates:
CNNMoney Sponsors
Market indexes are shown in real time, except for the DJIA, which is delayed by two minutes. All times are ET. Disclaimer LIBOR Warning: Neither BBA Enterprises Limited, nor the BBA LIBOR Contributor Banks, nor Reuters, can be held liable for any irregularity or inaccuracy of BBA LIBOR. Disclaimer. Morningstar: © 2012 Morningstar, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Disclaimer The Dow Jones IndexesSM are proprietary to and distributed by Dow Jones & Company, Inc. and have been licensed for use. All content of the Dow Jones IndexesSM © 2012 is proprietary to Dow Jones & Company, Inc. Chicago Mercantile Association. The market data is the property of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. and its licensors. All rights reserved. FactSet Research Systems Inc. 2012. All rights reserved. Most stock quote data provided by BATS.