Stories in the media frequently refer to the impact of the economy or politics on the “Average American” which made me wonder, just who is the Average American? I scrounged up the information that follows. I’m not sure there is a deep insight here but it is interesting to be able to put some of the financial and political chatter in context.
To begin with, the population is 50.4% female and 49.6% male. The average age of an American is 38.5 years. In terms of ethnicity, America is 58% white, 19% Hispanic, 12% Black, 6% Asian, 4% Multiracial, and .7% Native American.
With respect to finances, the Average American:
• Has a salary of $60,000
• Has a mortgage with a balance of $244,000
• Has credit card debt of $8,700
• Has a car loan with a balance of $24,000
• Has home equity lines of credit balances of $42,000
• Has student loans of $38,000
• Has savings of $62,000 although 28% of the population has less than $1,000 saved
• Purchased his/her first home at age 36