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Based on recent study, the average earner in the UK would have to work 52 years' worth of salary to attain the net worth of the most affluent 10% of the population.

Widening Financial Divide Over Time

The study reviewed wealth distribution data including the recent health crisis years and found that in 2006-08, it would have taken nearly four decades of average worker salary to join the top 10th of the wealth distribution.

An economic expert involved with the report observed: "Wealth gaps in Britain are presently so substantial that a regular employee saving all their earnings during their working years would continue to be incapable to attain the highest level of the wealth ladder."

Measuring the Financial Disparity

The analysis revealed that the disparity between the wealth of the average person and an individual in the top 10% was £1 million in the pre-crisis period, but had widened to £1.3m in inflation-adjusted terms by 2020-22.

The economist added: "These disparities are particularly worrying as financial progression in Britain is low – people that start life affluent tend to remain affluent, and the opposite holds true."

Comparative Financial Divide

Despite the wealth gap widening in specific figures, the portion of total wealth in the UK held by the wealthiest families – known as "proportional economic disparity" – has been "largely unchanged since the 1980s era," according to the study.

Over this timeframe, total wealth in the UK increased dramatically from three times the gross domestic product, to nearly seven and a half times.

Contributors of Wealth Inequality

Termed "passive" increases, through growing real estate costs and variations in retirement fund assessments, were the primary factors of the widening wealth gap from 2010 onward, according to the study.

These increases typically went to elderly homeowners, the analysis reveals – exacerbating the age-based economic gap.

Age-Based Wealth Disparities

The average wealth gap between individuals aged 30-34 and people aged 60-64 more than doubled in actual value, from £135k in the mid-2000s, to 310 thousand pounds.

Area-Based Differences

Furthermore, the study revealed pronounced area-based disparities, with the average level of assets in 2020-22 standing at £290,000 in the southeastern region, where real estate values have generally grown substantially, compared with £110k in the NE of England.

Health Crisis Years Consequences

Amid the health crisis, when numerous employees were protected by the taxpayer-backed furlough scheme, and pandemic lockdowns limited opportunities for spending, the information reveals many households were in a position to set aside money, increasing their wealth.

More affluent homes achieved superior outcomes, however. "The average household in the poorest fifth saw their available funds grow by only eighty pounds throughout the health crisis (2019-20 to 2021-22), approximately equivalent to the pre-crisis period. In contrast, the median home in the wealthiest fifth saw their liquid savings rise by £4,200," the analysis concludes.