>>> back in this country there have been a lot of headlines today about the disappearing american middle class . as we've reported here last night, the new report from the fed shows that american families lost 40% of their worth during what some economists now refer to as the great recession. tonight, anne thompson continues her reporting on how the recession is hitting home as many people are forced to adjust expectations.
>> jill and her mom angie are caught in the economic squeeze on the middle class . jill 's out of work for the second time in three years. 58-year-old angie juggles two jobs.
>> we're in the middle and we're with fighting to stay there.
>> reporter: linked by the financial challenges they face, similar to the bleak picture painted in this survey.
>> at 37, i was certain i was going to be completely in the middle of my glorious career, i never thought for one second i would have to call my mom and say, mom, you know what, could i borrow like 20 bucks?
>> reporter: they're careful of every expense. today americans are extraordinarily cautious.
>> we were burned very severely during the financial crisis , and many people saw the illusion of what they thought they had disappear quite quickly.
>> the most devastating blow, the collapse of the housing market .
>> reporter: the federal reserve says housing accounted for almost 30% of family assets in 2010 , the around value of the family's primary home slid more than 17%. a loss of $55,000.
>> the thinking was, it could take a decade to recapture the values. now can you imagine it being two decades to get back the kind of declines we've seen in housing in this country.
>> reporter: a little more than 15% of families reported their houses were under water in 2010 , worth less than what they paid for them. for the first time families borrowed money for education and cars. 19% of families took on debt to pay for school. the average owed more than $25,000. jill an electrician by trade is one of them.
>> i'm a little over halfway dn with my master's program and i'm $30,000 in debt.
>> reporter: there has been some improvement in the economy since the snapshot was taken 18 months ago. housing values have stopped falling, other surveys show a combination of higher stock prices and paying down debt has help net worth rise. they both agree there's no quick way out of this hole.
>> quickly becoming the story of
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