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Per new analysis, the average earner in the UK would need half a century of salary to attain the financial standing of the most affluent 10% nationwide.

Growing Financial Divide Over Time

The study examined wealth distribution data covering the 2020-22 timeframe and found that during the pre-financial crisis era, it would have needed 38 years' worth of typical employment income to enter the top 10th of the economic ladder.

A research lead involved with the study stated: "Wealth gaps in Britain are presently so substantial that a regular employee saving all their earnings during their working years would still not be able to achieve the peak of the wealth ladder."

Measuring the Wealth Divide

The research found that the difference between the wealth of the average person and someone in the wealthiest decile was £1m in the pre-crisis period, but had widened to £1.3 million in actual value by the pandemic years.

The researcher further stated: "These differences are particularly worrying as financial progression in Britain is restricted – those who commence life well-off tend to stay wealthy, and vice versa."

Relative Wealth Inequality

Even with the financial disparity growing in specific figures, the share of complete net worth in the UK possessed by the richest households – known as "relative wealth inequality" – has been "largely unchanged since the 1980s era," according to the research.

During this period, overall assets in the UK surged from three times the gross domestic product, to nearly seven and a half times.

Drivers of Wealth Inequality

Termed "passive" gains, through increasing property values and changes in retirement fund assessments, were the key contributors of the widening wealth gap from 2010 onward, as stated in the study.

These gains tended to accrue to older, property-owning households, the research shows – intensifying the intergenerational wealth divide.

Age-Based Financial Divides

The typical financial disparity between individuals aged 30-34 and people aged 60-64 increased over twofold in actual value, from £135,000 in the mid-2000s, to £310k.

Geographic Variations

There were also stark geographic differences, with the typical amount of assets in the pandemic period standing at 290 thousand pounds in the SE of England, where housing costs have generally grown substantially, versus 110 thousand pounds in the northeastern region.

Health Crisis Years Effects

During the pandemic, when countless laborers were protected by the taxpayer-backed furlough scheme, and Covid shutdowns curtailed consumption options, the data shows many households were able to save, increasing their wealth.

Wealthier families fared much better, though. "The median home in the poorest fifth saw their cash reserves rise by merely £80 over the pandemic period (from 2019 to 2022), roughly identical to the 24 months before COVID. Conversely, the median home in the top income bracket saw their cash reserves grow by 4,200 pounds," the analysis concludes.