Where I live (*Norway; so this post is based on observations in my own economy), 90% of the income-earning part of the population put their savings into real es

Where I live (*Norway; so this post is based on observations in my own economy), 90% of the income-earning part of the population put their savings into real estate, even though this appears to yield a very poor return on capital. So I don't think this point is nearly as universally accepted as you claim. Also, this 90% of the income-earning population earn more than enough to save considerable portion of what they earn - I earned less than the average before going to grad school, and I still saved >50% of my post-tax income through economically sensible lifestyle choices (shared housing, cheap car and low car usage, home-cooked meals, low consumption on gadgets). This situation is certainly not identical for everyone in the world, but for my five million fellow countrymen, there is vast room for beneficial changes here. Please refrain from accusing me of being patronizing without asking about the background. This is a discussion of a small part of a big issue; this is one idea of what to do for insurance if e.g. you're a programmer and worried about the future prospects of your profession. You have a point with regards to the "working poor" and other below-median groups, and this is a very serious structural issue. I have never implied that the solution to poverty is to buy stocks.