Don't Expect Your Income to be Stable

A Census Bureau study of household income levels from 2004 through 2007 found that change--big change--is practically the norm. In a longitudinal analysis, the Census Bureau found 50 percent of households experiencing an income gain or loss of at least 25 percent between 2004 and 2007. Twenty-seven percent of households saw their income rise by at least 25 percent, and 22 percent of households saw their incomes fall by at least 25 percent. Note that the study years preceded the Great Recession.

Source: Bureau of the Census, Dynamics of Economic Well-Being: Fluctuations in the U.S. Income Distribution, 2004-2007