Median Household Income Stable in November 2016

Median household income in November 2016 stood at $58,221, according to Sentier Research. This was greater, but not significantly so, than the October 2016 median, after adjusting for inflation. The November 2016 median was 0.7 percent higher than the November 2015 median and 10.1 percent above the $52,870 median of August 2011, which was the low point in Sentier's household income series. 

"Median annual household income in 2016 has not been able to maintain the momentum that it achieved during 2015," says Sentier's Gordon Green. But he notes, "real median income has increased by 1.2 percent from May 2016." Sentier's median household income estimates are derived from the Census Bureau's monthly Current Population Survey.

Median household income in November 2016 was 2.7 percent higher than the median of June 2009, which marked the end of the Great Recession. It was 0.9 percent higher than the median of December 2007, the start of the Great Recession. The November 2016 median was still 0.3 percent below the median of January 2000. The Household Income Index for November was 99.7 (January 2000 = 100.0).

Source: Sentier Research, Household Income Trends: November 2016