Joint Center July 10, 2026
Racial economic inequality has shaped the lives of most African Americans, and it continues into the “golden years” of retirement.
In 2022, the typical white family held about $285,000 in wealth, while the typical Black family held about $44,900. In other words, the typical Black family had less than one-sixth of the wealth of the typical white family.
This snapshot, The Reality of Racial Economic Inequality for Black Retirees, examines how Black retirement insecurity reflects the cumulative effects of the racial wealth divide, lower earnings, lower homeownership, reduced financial buffers, greater debt burdens, and unequal access to intergenerational wealth transfer.
Read it here, or below.