US election: middle-class US families no better off than 1990s The Federal Reserve discovered that the net worth of the median US household declined from $126,400 (£81,338) in 2007 to $77,300 (£49,742) in 2010. That left the wealth of the middle-American family at its lowest level since 1992, wiping out almost two decades of gains. Three-quarters of family losses were due to the 30 per cent decline in house prices, the Federal Reserve found. That meant the middle 60 per cent of Americans, whose wealth was generally tied up in property, suffered sharper losses than the richest and poorest. The annual income of the middle-American family also fell, while debt rose and the proportion of families saving money declined. The study came amid mounting fears about the recovery of the US economy, which is stuttering again after months of slow progress. Just 69,000 new jobs were created across the country last month - not enough to keep up with the growth in population - and forecasts for growth were revised down. Mr Obama has come under fire from Republicans for saying on Friday that the private sector was "doing fine." While official figures confirm that hiring by private firms has steadily improved as sharp losses have come from the public sector, allies to Mr Obama have conceded that his verdict was overly positive. Republicans said he had shown himself to be out of touch with private sector workers who are continuing to struggle, prompting the President to swiftly clarify that he was "absolutely clear" that "the economy is not doing fine." Yesterday Stan Greenberg and James Carville, two senior advisers to Bill Clinton's presidential campaigns, warned Mr Obama that his party's message - that conditions are getting better - was not resonating with middle-class voters in the key battleground states of Ohio and Pennsylvania. "These voters are not convinced that we are headed in the right direction," they said in a memo, adding that voters they interviewed "have a very realistic view of the long road back." The strategists urged Mr Obama to base his re-election campaign around "minimal discussion of the recovery and jobs created and maximal empathy for the challenges people face." Campaigning in Florida yesterday, Mr Romney said that the "doing fine" remark showed Mr Obama was out of touch with the concerns of voters.