Here are the facts:

Here are the facts:

The US economy has now added more than a million net new jobs over the last three months. This was the best 90 days’ worth of hiring since 1997.

More jobs were created in 2014 than during any year since 1999.

759,000 people just joined the labor force and there was no post-holiday seasonal decline – it may be that temporary workers are sticking.

Average hourly wages rose .5% in January.

The cost of living has only risen .8% over the last year while wage growth has outstripped it, rising by 2.2%.

21 of 50 states put through minimum wage hikes, including populous ones like NY, FL and NJ.

US energy consumers have received a cumulative $14 billion tax cut (and counting) as a result of the oil price decline since June.

Consumer confidence just smashed through the highest level since August 2007. Consumers are saying their “present condition” is the best it’s been since January 2008.

Auto sales rose 14% in January 2015 versus 2014, with 1.15 million vehicles sold in the US. Auto sales are now on an annualized pace of 16.6 million vehicles, the highest rate since 2006.

In December, commercial loan demand grew for the first time since June. Consumer loan applications and approvals are also expanding with dirt-cheap borrowing costs at levels that were previously unimaginable.

Single-family housing starts jumped 7.2% in December to an annual pace of 728,000. This is the best level for new home groundbreaking since March 2008. There’s more on the way – single-family home building permits rose 4.5% to their highest level since January 2008.

20% of consumers report that “jobs are plentiful” versus just 25% who say that jobs are hard to find. The differential between the two was cut in half between December and January, from -10 to -5, and shrinking.

96% of Americans with 401(k) accounts are actively participating and the average savings rate is 12% of salary (Fidelity). Among employees contributing to a 401(k) for ten years or more, the average balance is $248,000, up 11% from the end of 2013. The average balance across all 401(k) accounts is now over $100,000 and it has doubled since the end of 2008 (Vanguard).

US household net worth hit $81.5 trillion. This includes all stocks, bonds, properties and business values, minus any debts or liabilities. This is a new all-time record.

You’re welcome to attach any caveats to this data that you’d like to. You can qualify some or all of it. You can speculate on when any of these trends may end or whether the data comes from trustworthy sources. You can point out the various ways in which any or all of these data points are “not telling the real story” or you can dismiss the meaning of the numbers themselves when compared with A, B or C.

That’s up to you. But these are the facts.

This content, which contains security-related opinions and/or information, is provided for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon in any manner as professional advice, or an endorsement of any practices, products or services. There can be no guarantees or assurances that the views expressed here will be applicable for any particular facts or circumstances, and should not be relied upon in any manner. You should consult your own advisers as to legal, business, tax, and other related matters concerning any investment.

The commentary in this “post” (including any related blog, podcasts, videos, and social media) reflects the personal opinions, viewpoints, and analyses of the Ritholtz Wealth Management employees providing such comments, and should not be regarded the views of Ritholtz Wealth Management LLC. or its respective affiliates or as a description of advisory services provided by Ritholtz Wealth Management or performance returns of any Ritholtz Wealth Management Investments client.

References to any securities or digital assets, or performance data, are for illustrative purposes only and do not constitute an investment recommendation or offer to provide investment advisory services. Charts and graphs provided within are for informational purposes solely and should not be relied upon when making any investment decision. Past performance is not indicative of future results. The content speaks only as of the date indicated. Any projections, estimates, forecasts, targets, prospects, and/or opinions expressed in these materials are subject to change without notice and may differ or be contrary to opinions expressed by others.

Wealthcast Media, an affiliate of Ritholtz Wealth Management, receives payment from various entities for advertisements in affiliated podcasts, blogs and emails. Inclusion of such advertisements does not constitute or imply endorsement, sponsorship or recommendation thereof, or any affiliation therewith, by the Content Creator or by Ritholtz Wealth Management or any of its employees. Investments in securities involve the risk of loss. For additional advertisement disclaimers see here: https://www.ritholtzwealth.com/advertising-disclaimers

Please see disclosures here.

What's been said:

Discussions found on the web
  1. Orlando SEO company commented on Dec 07

    Orlando SEO company

    […]one of our guests recently encouraged the following website[…]

  2. womanizer pro commented on Dec 07

    womanizer pro

    […]Sites of interest we’ve a link to[…]

  3. Cracked iPhone commented on Dec 07

    Cracked iPhone

    […]here are some links to web pages that we link to due to the fact we assume they may be really worth visiting[…]

  4. how to get ready for anal commented on Dec 08

    how to get ready for anal

    […]very few sites that happen to become detailed below, from our point of view are undoubtedly nicely worth checking out[…]

  5. Big Boss Realistic Vibrator commented on Dec 08

    Big Boss Realistic Vibrator

    […]the time to read or check out the content material or sites we’ve linked to below the[…]

  6. dildo review commented on Dec 08

    dildo review

    […]Here is a great Weblog You might Find Intriguing that we Encourage You[…]

  7. how to use a vibrating penis ring commented on Dec 09

    how to use a vibrating penis ring

    […]always a huge fan of linking to bloggers that I really like but do not get a whole lot of link really like from[…]

  8. real work from home jobs 2018 commented on Dec 09

    real work from home jobs 2018

    […]here are some hyperlinks to web pages that we link to mainly because we assume they’re worth visiting[…]

  9. new sex toys commented on Dec 09

    new sex toys

    […]below you will come across the link to some web pages that we believe it is best to visit[…]

  10. finger vibrator commented on Dec 09

    finger vibrator

    […]here are some links to web-sites that we link to because we believe they are really worth visiting[…]

  11. Marketing commented on Dec 11

    Marketing

    […]always a significant fan of linking to bloggers that I really like but do not get lots of link adore from[…]

  12. harmonica game commented on Dec 12

    harmonica game

    […]The information and facts mentioned within the write-up are a few of the top offered […]

  13. womens clothes online store commented on Dec 12

    womens clothes online store

    […]we came across a cool site which you might love. Take a look if you want[…]

  14. پوسته وردپرس commented on Dec 12

    پوسته وردپرس

    […]Here are several of the websites we suggest for our visitors[…]