How much "money" does a family have to be considered wealthy? There are four conditions, and if a family meets any of these conditions, it will be counted
Looking back at the past 30 years, cars used to be a symbol of wealth, but now they are no longer beautiful, and houses have replaced them as the new vane of wealth. In 1996, the Santana 2000 sedan sold for 195,000 yuan, enough to buy a two-bedroom apartment in Beijing's Third Ring Road. However, time has passed, and now a Santana sedan costs only 50,000 to 80,000 yuan, while a two-bedroom apartment in Beijing's Third Ring Road has soared to a sky-high price of 7 or 8 million yuan. If you had chosen to buy a house back then, you may have no worries about food, clothing and life now.
And with the passage of time, the status of cars and houses has quietly changed. According to the central bank, real estate fixed assets account for more than 70% of the wealth of urban households in mainland China, and houses have become the core of family wealth. The continuous rise in housing prices has not only made real estate industry practitioners rich, but also enabled many buyers to achieve a leap in wealth through the appreciation of housing prices, and some people even achieved financial freedom. The money-making effect of real estate investment is becoming more and more prominent, attracting more and more people to join it. They can't stop after tasting the sweetness, and they don't hesitate to invest in the real estate market as long as they have the funds. By 2016, there was a nationwide housing speculation boom, and real estate investment has become a hot investment channel.
In this era, the house has become more than just a living space, but also an investment tool that can bring great returns. More and more people have achieved wealth accumulation and appreciation through real estate investment, and houses have become an important driver of their wealth growth.
Are you curious about how enthusiastic the people in our country are about buying a house? The data tells us that the homeownership rate of urban households in mainland China has climbed to a high of 96.86 percent. This means that the vast majority of households with urban hukou own at least one house of their own, and the average number of properties owned by each family has exceeded 1.5. There are also 40% of urban households who have 2 or more properties.
From these figures, we can clearly see that about 40% of urban households own more than one property not only for residential needs, but also for investment considerations. They choose to buy their homes early, expecting that in the years to come, these properties will be able to bring them greater financial returns.
With the continuous prosperity of the real estate market, it has not only played an important role in promoting the country's economic development, but also helped a large number of people achieve rapid growth in wealth. This is fully reflected in the continuous rise in the total and average assets of residents across the country.
The China Wealth Report 2022 reveals a striking phenomenon: at the aggregate level, the total wealth of Chinese residents has climbed to 687 trillion yuan in 2021, approaching the 700 trillion yuan mark, ranking second in the world, second only to the United States. On average, the assets of each family reached 1.34 million. From 2005 to 2021, this figure continued to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 14.7%. However, this seemingly huge wealth is not just cash in hand, it also covers various assets such as real estate, real estate, stocks, etc.
At the structural level, we find that financial assets account for a relatively low share, while real assets account for nearly 70% of the share. Specifically, in 2021, China's physical assets accounted for 69.3% of total wealth, mainly reflected in real estate, and the national housing market value reached 476 trillion yuan. In contrast, financial assets accounted for 30.7%, of which cash and deposits accounted for 53%, while equity assets and mutual funds accounted for only about 19%. It is worth noting that although the compound annual growth rate of mainland GDP over the same period was 12.8%, the growth rate of social wealth was significantly faster than the growth of GDP. The answer is the rapid increase in the value of the housing market, but a lot of wealth is just a figure on paper and has not given a real boost to the real economy.
In addition, the report also pointed out that the average total assets of mainland households reached 3.179 million yuan. However, among them, housing loans have become the main component of household debt, accounting for 75.9% of total household debt. After deducting liabilities, the average personal net worth is only 366,000 yuan. Such data may surprise many people, and some even think that they are "averaged". In this regard, professionals give four criteria for a wealthy family, and as long as any of these conditions are met, one can be considered a wealthy family.
The first condition: you don't have a lot of money, but you have a full house in the city
Although housing prices have fallen in the past two years, the housing prices in small counties are not low, generally between 5,000 and 10,000 yuan per square meter, but this does not prevent a family with a full-price commercial house from feeling satisfied. A full-payment house located in such a small county town is also worth 50-1 million. In first- and second-tier cities with high housing prices, their value may be as high as millions or even tens of millions.
But having said that, the house is a shelter for people, no matter how valuable it is, as long as there is this set of full-payment commercial housing, it means the stability of the house. Without the pressure of rent and mortgages, life is naturally much easier. Even if the income is not very good, you can live freely, earn as much as you want, and enjoy every moment of life. Therefore, as long as you have a full-payment house in the city, even if you don't have a lot of savings, as long as you work hard, a happy life can be reached, and such a family can naturally be called a well-off home.
The second condition: no debt, no house, 800,000 deposits
For those families who do not own a house but have a deposit of 800,000, their lives are equally promising. Because they don't have the pressure of going into debt, and the savings of 800,000 yuan are enough to pay for the down payment on a house in many cities, and in small cities, they can pay directly in full. For example, in an ordinary provincial capital, buying a 100-square-meter house with a unit price of 15,000 yuan requires a down payment of about 450,000 yuan. The remaining 350,000 yuan is not only enough to cope with the follow-up mortgage, but also to provide certain financial support for the decoration.
It can be seen that although 800,000 yuan may not be enough for people living in first- and second-tier cities, it is already a lot of wealth for most families living in ordinary provincial capitals and third- and fourth-tier cities. Many people are hesitant because of the down payment, and families with a deposit of 800,000 yuan have undoubtedly taken the most important step. Therefore, such a family can also be considered to live quite well.
The third condition: own a house under mortgage and hold a deposit of about 300,000 yuan
Owning a home that is being paid means that the housing problem has been largely resolved. However, for many new home buyers, mortgage stress is often a heavy burden, often leading to a shortage of renovations and furniture. However, if a family can keep about 300,000 yuan in savings after paying a down payment, such a family can undoubtedly be called a well-off family.
Although the initial pressure on a mortgage may be greater, over time, the burden of the mortgage will gradually decrease as income grows and the impact of inflation increases. Therefore, for families with mortgaged properties and savings of 300,000 yuan, they can not only easily cope with the mortgage in the early stage, but also gradually reduce the mortgage pressure in the future.
The fourth condition: the monthly household income exceeds 15,000 yuan
Some people may think that a monthly family income of 15,000 yuan is not too high, especially when considering that two people in a family are working, and the per capita income is only 7,500 yuan. In reality, however, this level of income is already quite substantial. According to data from Zhaopin.com, in 2020, only 3% of the total number of employed people with a monthly salary of 7,000 yuan was employed. This means that among the country's 800 million working population, only about 24 million people have a monthly income of more than 7,000 yuan.
Therefore, if a family earns more than 15,000 yuan a month, then their income level has surpassed 97% of the working population. Although a monthly income of 15,000 yuan may not be too high, as long as family members can continue to accumulate wealth and gradually increase their income over time, such a family may eventually enter the ranks of wealth.