Household incomes shrank for a second year in 2009, as the recession eroded the share of American families earning more than $100,000 and swelled the ranks of people who are poor or barely making it. Income estimates out on Sept. 28 from the American Community Survey, a wide array of census statistics reported annually, show the recession’s effect on millions of families.
The median income of $50,221 is down about 4 percent from its peak since the recession began in December 2007. Median household income that year was $52,384. About $1,500 of that loss occurred last year. The story was no different in the Seattle area. In King County, the median household income was down 4.7 percent, to $67,806. Snohomish County households fared slightly better, slipping 3.1 percent to $64,658. The percentage of King County households making $100,000 and more declined from 32.2 percent to 31 percent, and the percentage of those making less than $25,000 increased from 15.8 percent to 16.7 percent.
For more details read this article in the Seattle Times.
