The 2009 plunge in the Dow Jones Industrial Average that came on the heels of the financial meltdown has left a lasting impression on Americans, most of whom still haven't returned to investing.
According to the Gallup annual Economy and Finance Survey, while the numbers have come up a tad from where they were in 2013 — at just 52 percent — their 2015 level, at 55 percent, is still down considerably from where they were in 2007, when 65 percent of Americans put money into the stock market.
All age groups lost ground among those invested in stocks — whether through individual equities, mutual funds or a 401(k) or IRA — but older people abandoned the market in greater numbers and are staying away longer, especially among middle-income-level households.
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Among those aged 18–34, stock ownership was at 41 percent in 2010, but has since recovered to 49 percent. Among the 35-and-up crowd, however, the percentage of investors has continued to fall, with the 35-to-54-year-olds dropping from 73 percent in 2007 to 63 percent in 2010 to 58 percent this year. Those 55 and older fell from 65 percent in 2007 to 60 percent in 2010 to this year's 57 percent.
Income, as mentioned above, was an important factor in whether people stayed in the market — which is to be expected. Among those with incomes ranging from $30,000–$74,999, 72 percent were in the market in 2007. Now, however, only 56 percent say they invest.
Lower-income households, unsurprisingly — those with less than $30,000 — are also hovering at low levels for stock ownership (just 21 percent), while those with $75,000 or more in annual income, again, unsurprisingly, have consistently remained near 90 percent since 2007. Interestingly, the percentage of higher-income households ($75,000 and over) actually rose in 2010, from 90 percent in 2007 to 92 percent, but they too have dropped back a bit to 88 percent in 2015. For this group, that's a large drop compared with their earlier behavior.
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