Chicago, IL/ March 9, 2010 – Following a sharp 2008 decline in the in ranks of the wealthy, The Spectrem Group reports that 2009 was a bumper year for growing millionaires.

The number of U.S. households with a net worth of $1 million or more, not including primary residence (NIPR), grew 16% to 7.8 million in 2009, up from 6.7 million the year before, according to Affluent Market Insights 2010, a new report released today by Spectrem Group. This increase follows a 27% decline in the millionaire population during 2008.

Spectrem also reports that the number of Ultra High Net Worth households, those with a net worth of $5 million or more (NIPR), advanced 17% to 980,000 in 2009.

“The nation’s millionaires – together with its Ultra High Net Worth households – are bouncing back from the recession. Following a sharp decline in 2008, both groups saw their numbers advance nicely in 2009, with the U.S. millionaire population rising to 7.8 million. While still well short of its all-time high of 9.2 million in 2007, this year’s growth in the millionaire population is nevertheless welcome news for an economy still working to recover,” said George H. Walper, Jr., President of Spectrem Group.

In addition to the millionaire groups, the broader affluent population, those with a net worth of $500,000 or more (NIPR), grew by 12% in 2009 to 12.7 million.

Chart: Total Households 1997 to 2009 (millions)


Spectrem’s Affluent Market Insights 2010 is based on Spectrem Investor Research surveys of 3,000 affluent households conducted throughout 2009 with a margin of error of plus or minus 4.4%, an online survey of 1,498 households with a net worth of $100,000 to $1 million fielded in July 2009, and online surveys of 1,089 households with a net worth of $1 million to $5 million and 523 households with a net worth of $5 million to $25 million conducted in November 2009. The margins of error for those surveys range from plus or minus 2.4% to plus or minus 4.2%.

Source: The Spectrem Group.