8% of French people above the wealth threshold

A couple with two children crosses this wealth threshold at almost 7300 euros. REUTERS / Kai Pfaffenbach

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We know the poverty line, but the French Observatory of Inequalities has just created its wealth line. Objective: to have a study tool and give food for thought on the distribution of wealth in the country. Race results: in France, 5 million people live in France above this threshold. But what does it correspond to?

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The Inequalities Observatory has set its wealth threshold at 3,740 euros per month after tax for a single person. This corresponds to twice the median income in France, a tonnage slightly higher than that which allows INSEE to qualify people as "comfortable". A couple with two children crosses this wealth threshold at almost 7,300 euros. In total, just over 8% of the French population is rich according to these criteria, this is equivalent to the share of the population living below the poverty line. Almost as rich as poor, but 10% of the wealthiest share a quarter of all after-tax income.

Moreover, the observatory stresses that despite its fiscal policy France seems to please the very wealthy. Even after taxes, the wealthiest 1% in the country is richer than in the other European states, except Switzerland.

The Inequalities Observatory has also looked into wealth in heritage. He established his wealth threshold at 490,000 euros, three times the median wealth. More than 4.5 million households have more.

So who are these rich? The over 50s are overwhelmingly in the majority. They are senior managers, lawyers, doctors, financial advisers and even business managers. Among the richest 10%, a third lives in the Paris region.

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