Of the respondents to the 2009 Pheonix Wealth Survey, 74 per cent said they feel less wealthy than in the previous year; in the 2008 survey 47 per cent felt this way. 

Pessimism on the US economy was prevalent, with nearly one-third of those surveyed expecting the country to remain in a prolonged economic downturn for the next two years – the highest level since the question was first asked in Pheonix’s 2001 survey.

As might be expected, half of the US HNW individuals surveyed said they had become more risk averse over the last twelve months – 40 per cent said they are “more” risk averse and 10 per cent said they are “much more” risk averse.

Pheonix also found that, for the second year in a row, preservation of assets was prioritised over return on assets. In this year’s survey, 59 per cent of respondents said capital preservation was their priority – the widest margin between the two responses in ten years.

In another unprecedented finding, confusion on how to invest in this environment reached an all-time high in this year’s survey, with 50 per cent agreeing with the statement, “Lately I’ve become confused about the best way to invest my money.”  The last time this proportion was near this level was in the 2003 bear market, when 47 per cent of respondents agreed with that statement.