By Mark J. Perry          May 22, 2010  

From The Atlantic: Having examined the finances of all 43 presidents, we calculated the net worth figures for each in 2010 dollars. Because a number of presidents, particularly in the early 19th Century, made and lost huge fortunes in a matter of a few years, the number for each man is based on his net worth at its peak.

We have taken into account hard assets like land, estimated lifetime savings based on work history, inheritance, homes, and money paid for services, which include things as diverse as their salary as Collector of Customs at the Port of New York to membership on Fortune 500 boards. Royalties on books have also been taken into account, along with ownership of companies and yields from family estates.

The net worth of the presidents varies widely. George Washington was worth more than half a billion in today’s dollars. Several presidents went bankrupt.

What’s interesting is that George Washington was probably the wealthiest U.S. president with $525 million of net worth, depending on how you count the entire Kennedy family estate of $1 billion toward’s JFK’s net worth. Also, it’s pretty amazing that Bill Clinton’s net worth of $38 million is almost as much as the combined net worth of both Bush Presidents together ($43 million total), see chart above.

http://wallstreetpit.com/29019-net-worth-of-the-u-s-presidents