Dear John,

In Canada, age largely explains the different levels of wealth among people.

It’s a natural phenomenon — younger people accumulate debt, begin paying it down as they enter the workforce, then begin to accumulate wealth over time.

For example, according to the latest Statistics Canada Survey of Financial Security, in 2019, among the wealthiest top 20% of households in Canada, 77.3% were composed of people 50 years old or older.

Meanwhile, among the least-wealthy bottom 20% of households, 64.8% were composed of people 50 and under.

And that same year, the average net worth in Canada peaked at $1.17 million, for Canadians aged 60 to 64, while for those under 30, it was less than $150,000.

Wealth inequality is largely the outcome of millions of voluntary transactions in society, and for the vast majority of Canadians, wealth accumulates systematically over a lifetime.

Learn more here, and be sure to share it on social media.

Sincerely,

Niels Veldhuis
President
The Fraser Institute