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Here's a bullish sign for the economy: Wealthy Americans are more optimistic about the economy...

  • Friday, April 20, 2012, 8:21 PM ET
    Here's a bullish sign for the economy: Wealthy Americans are more optimistic about the economy than any time in the last year, according to the March reading of the Mendelsohn Affluent Barometer. The Barometer studies the lifestyles and spending habits of today’s affluent Americans. 50% of respondents interviewed think they personally will be better off 12 months from now. That's a 12% jump since January and its highest reading in over a year.
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This news story has 24 comments:

  •  
    I wonder what the questions were. Are they not worried about inflation, with government debt so high? Are they happy with the interest rate on their savings accounts, or if they are in the bond market they are happy with the yields?
    What is it that they are happy about.
    20 Apr 2012, 08:30 PM Reply Like
  •  
    You can subscribe if you want; sample size is too small for me.

    http://bit.ly/ItN8Ja

    edit: er, I'd prefer links weren't changed to bit.ly. I've come to associate that with spam.
    20 Apr 2012, 08:42 PM Reply Like
  •  
    Seems like a pretty meaningless bit of media nonsense compared to many other types of investment measures.
    20 Apr 2012, 09:46 PM Reply Like
  •  
    Spam or malware. Seeking Alpha should stop the practice of shortening/converting links, I automatically do NOT click on them since I have no idea where the link goes - unacceptable.
    21 Apr 2012, 01:56 AM Reply Like
  •  
    When AAPL goes up by 40% and QQQ by 12% in one quarter, they are not worried about a 3% annual increase in inflation.
    21 Apr 2012, 03:38 AM Reply Like
  •  
    1000 people polled? This is not a reliable sampling of US citizens.
    20 Apr 2012, 09:18 PM Reply Like
  •  
    Hoe,

    It was a poll of 1000 wealthy Americans, the so-called 1% so not a surprise.

    Just superimpose the polling results on the S&P and you get pretty much a bang-on correlation. This is the Bernank's "wealth effect" in action. Too bad the rest of the country doesn't feel the same way.

    Vote Obama: "The Man Who Makes The Rich, Richer and The Poor Serfs."
    21 Apr 2012, 12:04 PM Reply Like
  •  
    From the above comments I can only conclude that most commenter's did not read the article. The article itself was not very well written and has several misleading conclusions but one would hope that one would read the article before expounding on it!
    20 Apr 2012, 09:33 PM Reply Like
  •  
    Please thrill us with your acumen. What part of the article did some of the posters miss?
    20 Apr 2012, 09:42 PM Reply Like
  •  
    Hoopono
    From the above comments I can only conclude that most commenter's did not read the article.
    ======================...
    While being SA reader, a lot of information and comments to it come to me for free from other poster
    Saves money and time.
    In too many cases comments are more valuable then original info
    20 Apr 2012, 10:45 PM Reply Like
  •  
    Perhaps they have most of their wealth invested in stocks and have sat on it while they appreciated.
    20 Apr 2012, 09:41 PM Reply Like
  •  
    More Americans each week know the dark days of the W. Bush recession are over. Will people vote to turn the clock back to another GOP idiot?
    20 Apr 2012, 09:52 PM Reply Like
  •  
    Yea, that's why the workforce participation rate of the over 65 crowd has jumped from 16% to 18% since 2007, and the 25 - 54 year group has dropped. More older folks are stuck working, and younger folks can't find jobs.
    20 Apr 2012, 11:30 PM Reply Like
  •  
    I will.
    21 Apr 2012, 01:57 AM Reply Like
  •  
    Ah, the DNC animated photocopier showed up in this thread. What a shock. Here you go Terry. A little video just for you on just how wonderful President Petulant has been at spending money. (Hint: as bad as Bush was on running up the debt, he was a rank amateur compared to your guy.) If that's too complex for you to grasp (ooo! icky math stuff!), just say so, Terry, and I'll see if I can find a remedial version for you.

    http://bit.ly/IEbOxG
    21 Apr 2012, 07:52 AM Reply Like
  •  
    Terry,

    Not only you are incredibly boring, you have become exceedingly nasty as well.

    Hope and Change has morphed into Misery and Blame. How inspiring.

    At least we know Obama's elections strategy this time around courtesy of Terry:

    "Blame All of The Above and vote for me because I am the least worst option."
    21 Apr 2012, 12:07 PM Reply Like
  •  
    You call future President Romney an idiot, we call him the man who has come to fix everything Obama has screwed up and that list is long. The new GOP controlled Senate, House and Presidency are going to spend at least a full year repealing everything the Obama administration has put into place. Are you uber-Liberals that blinded by ideology that you can't see what Obama is doing to our country? Terry330 are posting under 4 or 5 names now?
    20 Apr 2012, 10:06 PM Reply Like
  •  
    Noebrain,

    Where does Eisenhower fit within your constellation of uber liberals?
    21 Apr 2012, 12:07 AM Reply Like
  •  
    "Wealthy Americans...think they personally will be better off 12 months from now."

    Even if they're right, that doesn't mean anyone else (the not-wealthy) will be better off 12 months from now.
    20 Apr 2012, 10:16 PM Reply Like
  •  
    Wealthy Americans = according to the article, those making over $100,000 a year. That puts them in about the 80th percentile, with an average tax burden at the Federal Level of about 20%. After State, Local and Property taxes, I'd hardly call them "wealthy".
    20 Apr 2012, 11:28 PM Reply Like
  •  
    Mendelsohn Affluent Barometer with Terry330
    What a horrible Friday night
    20 Apr 2012, 11:43 PM Reply Like
  •  
    This market is a BULL!
    21 Apr 2012, 01:57 AM Reply Like
  •  
    Many of those now drawing six-figure incomes are government workers on pensions, especially if they had two workers in that category.

    Getting $100,000+ in income with no interest rate worries, no stock market risk and often preferred tax treat [many states don't charge state level income tax on retirement income- e.g. PA]. Most of these families also get SS income already also.

    You don't need savings or have concerns about anything in that situation. They are living the high life on current taxpayers' dimes.
    21 Apr 2012, 07:58 AM Reply Like
  •  
    True. But that "high life" is coming to an end. Politicians will never have the guts to derail the government retiree gravy train, but reality will kick in sooner or later. I'm betting on sooner.
    21 Apr 2012, 08:07 AM Reply Like
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