- Henrys are people who have high incomes but are not yet wealthy.
- On average, Henry is a white Gen-Xer, a significant portion of whom are also DINKs.
- Although Henry owns financial assets and earns a large salary income, he also has many debts.
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Just because someone has a six-figure income doesn’t mean they’re wealthy. And vice versa.
Instead, there are some high-income earners who are still trying to get their hands on that egg. Unlike many older Americans with higher net worth, these workers are so-called “Henrys” – high earners but not yet wealthy. They may one day own assets that will make them billionaires, but for now they’re just raking in big paychecks.
So who is Henry?
To analyze Henry America’s demographics, we used the Consumer Finance Survey to analyze Americans with an annual income of $200,000 or more but a net worth of less than $1 million.
So who are these stratified Henrys? They are a little older than the broader Henry class, primarily white, and perhaps in the role of office workers.
Broadly speaking, we know that they are typically Millennials or younger Generation Xers. Most Henrys are between 40 and 49 years old, but 5.3% are between 20 and 29 years old. Almost 28% are between 30 and 39 years old, and more than a fifth are between 50 and 59 years old. The average age of Henry is approximately 46 years.
Henrys also tend to be white, and are overwhelmingly couples.
More than 90% of Henrys are married. As BI’s Noah Scheidlower previously reported, many Henry is likely to be a DINK. — that is, they are two-income households without children.
For some couples, being DINKS means the ability and freedom to travel, save, and prepare for early retirement. When we analyzed this group of Henrys, we found that about 31% were married and had no children. This is a higher rate than Henry’s group. Researchers estimate that 20% of all American adults may choose to live without children.. Just under 60% of Henry’s men are married and have children.
All Henrys have some kind of financial assets. The vast majority of them have checking accounts, and the majority own cars and homes.
Many Henrys are in debt, which is not surprising since many have mortgages. Unlike millionaires and billionaires, who derive most of their wealth from stock holdings, Henry may still be paying off some debt.
Indebted Henrys owe an average of $319,170. Just over three-quarters of Henley households have mortgages and home equity loans, and the average balance on these loans is currently about $312,185.
On the other hand, about 43% of Henrys take out education loans. The average is approximately $74,864.
Americans as a whole are currently in a bit of a trust crisis.credit card balance Continue to achieve record highsFortune found American cardholders carry an average credit card balance of $5,733. HENRY carries nearly twice as much luggage as her. Like other consumers, Henry has credit card debt, and just under half carry a balance on their credit card.
Still, Henrys, like most Americans, tend to make money. They get paid jobs. Wages make up most of Henry’s income, but a significant portion comes from capital gains and the businesses he owns.
That’s the key difference between Henry and those considered super-rich. Billionaires tend to derive most of their compensation from capital gains (money earned by selling assets such as stocks), which are taxed at lower rates than regular salaries.
Others consider most of their income to be capital gains, the value of stocks and other assets. When selling capital gains, the tax rate is lower than the direct income tax rate.
However, by repaying debts and continuing to increase real estate and stocks, Henry and his friends may be able to jump from high income earners to wealthy people, but they are not at that stage yet.
Are you a Henry or are you aiming to be a Henry? Contact this reporter at: jkaplan@businessinsider.com.