Still Feeling Rich With One-Third Less

我对许多富人现在大肆哭穷的做法有点看不惯。我并不认为他们是被宠坏了的哭诉者。所有痛苦都是相对的；如果他们的生活因为失去私人飞机或更多的东西而被搞糟，我又有什么资格来评价他们的沮丧。Associated Press著名歌星艾尔顿•约翰让我感到烦恼的是下跌的财富价值和价格之间的关系。首先，让我们来说说财富。越来越多的人同意，富人有大约三分之一的财富化作泡影。首先是来自美国的调查结果显示，受全球金融危机影响，百万富翁在人数和财富数字上都减少了30%左右。几周前又有《星期日泰晤士报》(Sunday Times)的富人榜，这个榜单显示，这场危机让英国1,000名富人的资产缩水约1,550亿英镑，幅度达到三分之一。比如，英国歌坛名人艾尔顿•约翰(Elton John)身家缩水26%。因此，如果要我们“重新设定”富人世界，我们应该直接减掉三分之一左右。从这些新数字本身来看，富人会感到自己变穷了。如果一个人的财富从300万美元减少到200万美元或从3亿美元减到2亿万美元，那么他的生活方式可能会改变，不过这些变化应该算不上翻天覆地。从定义上说，财富是一个相对的概念。而且，就在财富减少的同时，价值和价格也在变。高端房地产价格至少下跌了20%-30%。股票下跌了40%左右，还有一些私人股权投资对冲基金和商业房地产投资也在下跌。艺术品红酒法拉利跑车私人飞机度假和时尚用品的拍卖和私人出售的价格也在下滑，虽然程度各有不同。如果你的财富缩水30%，而其他人的财富没有变化，那么你会感到自己变穷了。但如果你和其他人的财富都缩水30%，难道你不觉得自己还跟以前一样富有吗？如果你所购买物品的价格也下跌了30%甚至更多，难道你对富有的体验会有所不同吗？人人都知道，水涨船高，而且是所有船“都”高。同样道理，退潮的时候所有船都会降下去。难道那些游艇会被单独留在高处吗？Robert Frank(“奢华人生”专注于富人的生活和文化，由Robert Frank主笔。)相关阅读金融高管太太话说“苦日子” 2009-05-01俄罗斯富豪身家缩水七成 2009-04-21金融危机夺走富人10万亿美元 2009-04-08福布斯富豪榜上的赢家 2009-03-17美国家庭财富蒸发近18% 2009-03-13


I have got a problem with the spate of wealthy people now crying poverty. It isn't that I think they are spoiled whiners. All suffering is relative and if their lives have been turned upside by losing their private jet or more, who am I to rate their angst.What does nag at me is the relationship between falling wealth, value and prices.First, let us consider wealth.There is a growing consensus that the rich have lost about a third of their wealth. First came the U.S. surveys, which show millionaires down about 30% - both in wealth and population - as a result of the global financial crisis. Over the weekend comes news that the Sunday Times Rich List shows that the crisis has wiped out about GBP155 billion ($227 billion), or a third of the wealth of Britain's 1,000 people. Sir Elton John, for instance, is down 26%.So if we were to 'reset' the world of wealth, we should just knock off about a third.On their own, the new numbers suggest that the rich feel poorer. Going from $3 million in net worth to $2 million, or $300 million to $200 million can change a person's lifestyle, though probably not drastically.Yet wealth, by definition, is relative. And even as wealth has dropped, so have values and prices.Real-estate prices at the high end are coming down at least 20% to 30%. Stocks are down roughly 40%, along with some private equity, hedge fund and commercial real estate investments. Prices at auction and in private sales for art, wine, Ferraris, private jets, vacations and fashion also have plummeted, though by varying degrees.If your wealth has fallen 30%, and everyone else's stayed the same, you would feel poorer. But if your wealth fell 30% along with everyone else's, wouldn't you still feel as wealthy as before?And if the prices of things you buy also have fallen 30% or more, wouldn't your experience of being wealthy stay the same?It is accepted wisdom that a rising tide lifts all boats. Wouldn't a sinking tide, when all boats are falling, still leave the yachts on top?Robert Frank