It's a tad easier to get into the Top 1%.
It took just under $429,000 to make into this elite group in 2013, according to the latest data from the Internal Revenue Service. A year earlier, Americans had to have about $435,000 in adjusted gross income to be part of the Top 1%.
The dip could be due to the wealthy shifting some of their income into 2012 to avoid a slew of tax changes that took effect in 2013. Congress and President Obama agreed in late 2012 to raise the rates on high-income earners and on dividends and long-term capital gains. Also, the wealthy were subject to two new Obamacare taxes starting in 2013.
The minimum needed to be part of the even more exclusive clubs of the Top 0.1% and 0.01% also dropped a bit. It took $1.9 million to get into the Top 0.1%, down from $2.2 million. And those with a cool $9.5 million could join the ranks of the 0.01%. Entry no longer took $12.1 million.
The ranks of the wealthy grew in 2013, with 1.38 million households making it into the Top 1%, up from 1.36 million a year earlier.
While their incomes are high, they also pay a lot in taxes. The Top 1% earned 19% of all income reported in 2013, but paid nearly 38% of the federal income taxes.
