Earn
Rich keep getting richer
Wealthier Australians have cashed in on a period of high growth, while struggling Aussies have barely moved up, according to market research.

Rich keep getting richer
Wealthier Australians have cashed in on a period of high growth, while struggling Aussies have barely moved up, according to market research.

Numbers in Roy Morgan’s Wealth Report show that the top 30 percentile of Australians have grown their personal wealth by over 60 per cent since 2007, while the bottom 10 per cent went from minus $20,000 in wealth to minus $19,000 in the same period.
Roy Morgan CEO Michele Levine credited the growth in wealth to older Aussies who have cashed in on the country’s good fortunes while also considering it to be “the luck of the draw”.
“Basically, people in their late 50s through to their late 60s have lived through an environment of massive growth,” Ms Levine said.
On the other end of the spectrum, “if someone is coming into a situation now, where we are approaching a time where we won’t have big inflation, we won’t have interest rates, we won’t have high growth”.
“This is not something you can just start in the world and all goes well,” Ms Levine said.
How has the nation performed since 2007?
The figures show that depending on individual circumstances, the national statistics since 2007 can either show Australia as a country going forward by great leaps or regressing.
Net wealth actual has grown by 90.5 per cent, while net wealth CPI adjusted has grown by 47.6 per cent.
Over the same period, median CPI adjusted net wealth has fallen 2.2 per cent since 2007.
Personal assets have almost doubled between 2007 and 2019, having grown from $5.2 trillion to $9.872 trillion, according to Roy Morgan.
As assets have increased, so too have debts, although by a lower percentage than assets: Debt has risen from $691 billion in 2007 to $1.2 trillion in 2019.
CPI adjusted figures show the average Aussie has just under $500,000 in assets.
About the author

About the author


Salary
Employers scrambling to prevent workplace brain drain
As workplace managers face a swiftly evolving employment market that’s increasingly favouring the demands of white-collar employees and jobseekers, bosses are falling under mounting pressure to pres...Read more

Salary
Unions back Albanese’s pledge to close gender pay gap
An electoral promise from Labor to make gender pay equity an objective of the Fair Work Act has been hailed as a “watershed moment” from industry peak bodies who have traditionally advocated for s...Read more

Salary
Coles asked to disprove $115m in alleged wage theft
One of Australia’s biggest supermarkets faces allegations that it underpaid more than 7,500 employees a total of $115 million. ...Read more

Salary
Gen Z left behind in progress to gender equality
Women under 25 may emerge from the pandemic in a worse financial position than when it began, new research has shown. ...Read more

Salary
Show me the money: I deserve a COVID recognition payment, and so do you
Staff are currently in high demand. But they’re also mostly overworked, overtired, underplayed and underpaid. ...Read more

Salary
Is Australia headed for the ‘Great Resignation’?
A wave of resignations from Australian workers is expected in the next six months. ...Read more

Salary
Earnings surge in lockdown, but is a slump ahead?
A new report from CBA has shown that it may actually pay to be in lockdown, as growth in household income surged ahead in NSW and Victoria. ...Read more

Salary
RBA sets sights on 4% unemployment
The RBA has updated its key objectives in order to jolt the Australian economy into growth, including a two-decade low unemployment rate of 4 per cent. ...Read more

Wrapping up an eventful 2021
Listen now

What Omicron means for property, and are units right for first-time buyers? What is equity crowdfunding? Are industry super funds tapping into member funds to save their skins?
Listen now

Will housing affordability improve in 2022? Will buy now, pay later become the norm? Why are Aussies staying in failing super products?
Listen now

Who really benefits from crypto ETFs? How will the RBA respond to rising inflation? Could a mandate help address unpaid super?
Listen now

Salary
Employers scrambling to prevent workplace brain drain
As workplace managers face a swiftly evolving employment market that’s increasingly favouring the demands of white-collar employees and jobseekers, bosses are falling under mounting pressure to pres...Read more

Salary
Unions back Albanese’s pledge to close gender pay gap
An electoral promise from Labor to make gender pay equity an objective of the Fair Work Act has been hailed as a “watershed moment” from industry peak bodies who have traditionally advocated for s...Read more

Salary
Coles asked to disprove $115m in alleged wage theft
One of Australia’s biggest supermarkets faces allegations that it underpaid more than 7,500 employees a total of $115 million. ...Read more

Salary
Gen Z left behind in progress to gender equality
Women under 25 may emerge from the pandemic in a worse financial position than when it began, new research has shown. ...Read more

Salary
Show me the money: I deserve a COVID recognition payment, and so do you
Staff are currently in high demand. But they’re also mostly overworked, overtired, underplayed and underpaid. ...Read more

Salary
Is Australia headed for the ‘Great Resignation’?
A wave of resignations from Australian workers is expected in the next six months. ...Read more

Salary
Earnings surge in lockdown, but is a slump ahead?
A new report from CBA has shown that it may actually pay to be in lockdown, as growth in household income surged ahead in NSW and Victoria. ...Read more

Salary
RBA sets sights on 4% unemployment
The RBA has updated its key objectives in order to jolt the Australian economy into growth, including a two-decade low unemployment rate of 4 per cent. ...Read more