Americans Say $839,000 Is 'Comfortable' — But A Financial Therapist Warns That Net Worth Alone 'Misleads' Your True Wealth

Feeling financially rich keeps slipping further away, even as salaries rise and portfolios swell. Many Americans say it now takes more money than ever to feel financially comfortable. 

Against that backdrop, certified financial planner and licensed therapist Joy Slabaugh warns that chasing a single figure often misleads families about security. Her critique comes as household debt hits fresh highs. Inside this gap between perception and reality lies a clearer route to financial comfort.

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Comfort Threshold Rises Again

Americans now peg financial comfort at $839,000, according to Charles Schwab's SCHW "2025 Modern Wealth Survey," released last month, up from $778,000 in 2024. Meanwhile, Generation Z sets the bar lower at $329,000 — underscoring age-based expectations. The survey polled 2,200 U.S. adults nationwide from April to May.

"Financial comfort feels more tangible than outright wealth," said Rob Williams, managing director of financial planning at Schwab.

He added that 63% of respondents believe building wealth requires more effort than a year before. Inflation is their top concern, while 43% blame higher interest rates. Those forces help explain why households remain uneasy despite lofty stock valuations and steady hiring.

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Why Net Worth Misleads

Slabaugh sees a pattern among clients seeking clarity. "It's always a little more than what they have," she told CNBC. For her, net worth alone often misleads families into equating spreadsheet gains with lasting security.  She likens the fixation to watching a pulse without checking the patient's overall health.

Instead, Slabaugh urges defining values first and then building a budget to serve them. She offers a simple pivot: if someone is paying hundreds each month for streaming as an escape — they can reroute that money into a vacation fund so the places they binge-watch become trips they can actually take. 

Linking money to purpose, she says, eases anxiety more than chasing a milestone number. The goal is to treat wealth as a tool, not a scoreboard.

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Debt Clouds The Picture

Fresh data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York shows that balances hit $18.39 trillion in Q2. Credit card debt climbed to $1.21 trillion, while 4.4% of obligations are delinquent. Mortgage and auto balances also inched higher, even as wage growth cooled.

The New York Fed reports that as of the end of June, 10.2% of aggregate student loan debt is 90 days or more delinquent — the result of resumed reporting following a long pause. Those numbers underscore Slabaugh's warning: What looks like financial strength on paper can rapidly unravel as borrowing costs bite. As interest rates climb and cash gets diverted to minimum payments, the comfort threshold becomes increasingly elusive — no matter what your net worth says.

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