Median Wealth of Black Families Could Fall to Zero: Report

A new report has warned that Black households are on track to hit zero median wealth by 2053, meaning they will own nothing but their current income.

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The report "The Road to Zero Wealth," co-authored by the non-profits Prosperity Now and the Institute for Policy Studies, predicts that it will take another 20 years for the Latino households to match the same level.

The staggering wealth inequality between white and Black households is also predicted to widen.

"In just under four years from now, median White households are projected to own 86 and 68 times more wealth than Black and Latino households, respectively," the study found.

"Between 1983 and 2013, the wealth of median Black and Latino households decreased by 75 percent (from US$6,800 to US$1,700) and 50 percent (from US$4,000 to US$2,000), respectively, while median White household wealth rose by 14 percent (from US$102,200 to US$116,800)," the report added.

The study also emphasized that the current government policies have helped sustain the economic disparity.

An earlier report published by the Corporation for Enterprise Development and the Institute for Policy Studies found that the average wealth of white families has grown by a whopping 84 percent — three times the rate of the Black families and about 1.2 times the growth of Latino families.

According to the study, if Black and Latino populations continue to grow at the same rate, it would take them at least 228 years and 84 years, respectively, to close the wealth gap.

A June study by the Boston Consulting Group, a global management consulting firm, said that 70 percent of U.S. private wealth will be controlled by 1 percent of the population by 2021.

Currently, 63 percent of the private wealth is controlled by 1 percent.