As a bear market in equities far outstripped the gains in real estate, US household wealth dropped a record $6.1 trillion in Q2 to the lowest it has been in a year, according to a report by the Federal Reserve released Friday.

Household net worth had tumbled from $149.9 trillion at the end of March to $143.8 trillion at the end of June, producing the second quarterly decline in a row. Americans’ total wealth had declined from a record $150 trillion at the end of 2021, dropping by more than $6.2 trillion from that peak.

The decline was $30 billion greater than the previous record decline, seen two years prior when the onset of the coronavirus pandemic upended the markets. However on a percentage basis, the previous decline at the beginning of the pandemic still stands as the record, at a 5.2% decline, vs the current 4.1% decline in the present report.

The decline was triggered by a $7.7 trillion drop in equities as the stock market fell into bear territory in the first half, after surging inflation and the ire of the Federal Reserve led to an aggressive policy of monetary tightening that frightened investors. The drop in equity values was offset by a smaller, $1.4 trillion gain in real estate values during that period.

After rising at an 8.3% rate in the first quarter, total non-financial debt slowed its assent, only rising at an annualized rate of 6.5%. Household debt growth also slowed down, from an 8.3% annualized rate in the first quarter to a 7.4% rate in Q2.

Business, federal, state and local government debt all increased.

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