are you better off? here are the numbers

Are You Really Better Off?Here Are the Numbers

http://www.thefiscaltimes.com/Articles/2012/09/04/Are-You-Better-Off-Here-Are-the-Numbers.aspx

After plunging sharply during the recession, real gross domestic product has rebounded but remains anemic:

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Inflation, including volatile food and energy prices, remains tame, though it’s higher than the recessionary levels it was at in 2009:



Real (inflation-adjusted) personal income has climbed above where it was when Obama took office. Surprise! But median household incomes have fallen since the end of the recession in June 2009, according to Sentier Research. "Based on our data, almost every group is worse off now than it was three years ago, with the exception of households with householders 65 years old and over," Sentier's Gordon Green said in a statement released last month.



And household debt levels have come down significantly:



Housing prices have stabilized, but remain well below their bubble-era highs:



While mortgage rates have fallen to historic lows:



And the stock market has soared:



But, the unemployment rate, which hit 10 percent in October 2009, stands at 8.3 percent, still above the 7.8 percent of January 2009:



And a more comprehensive reading of the labor picture including the underemployed is also significantly higher than it had been:



The labor force participation rate remains near a 30-year low:



And long-term unemployment remains high:



As does the median length of unemployment:



are you better off? here are the numbers

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