The idea that a stock market crash only hurts the rich is outdated nonsense.

I’m really irritated by the many careless articles that keep repeating the claim that since "the top 10% owns almost 88% of all stocks," only the rich are affected by a stock market crash. That logic is flawed.

Yes, the top 10% hold the vast majority of stocks, but that doesn’t mean they’re the only ones impacted. About 61% of Americans have some stock exposure—whether directly or through retirement accounts. Just because the wealthy own most of the *value* doesn't mean the rest are unaffected.

Here’s a rough breakdown:

* The top 10% owns around 88% of stocks.
* The next 40% (the upper-middle and middle class) owns around 12%.
* The remaining 11% of stockholders own so little that it’s almost negligible in value.
* The bottom 39% of Americans own no stocks at all.

I’d argue that the group most *affected* by a crash is that middle 40%. A major drop could meaningfully damage their retirement plans or lifestyle. The top 10% might see big losses on paper, but they're still rich. And while the bottom 39% don’t hold stocks, they’re still vulnerable to the downstream effects of a crash—like layoffs, hiring freezes, and economic instability.

So no, a market crash doesn’t just hurt the rich. It hits the middle class harder where it counts.