How many days after the stock market topped did the crash occur?

Most people don’t realize that the Crash of 1929 and the Crash of 1987 both occurred exactly 55 calendar days after the stock market had topped. All prices in this article are closing prices on the day being referenced.

Is the 55-day rule in play?

However, in 2013 and in 2016, the 55-day Rule was “in play,” but did not produce a crash. The sharp market selloff of August 2015 was “related” to the 55-day time period but did not line up exactly. For whatever it’s worth, the 55-day period has proven to be problematic in a big way two times in the past.

What qualifies as a stock market crash?

There is no official threshold for what qualifies as a stock market crash. But a common standard is the rapid double-digit percentage decline over a period of several days in a stock index, such as the Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500 Index or Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) .

How much money should you lose in a stock market crash?

Data source: Yahoo! Finance, author calculations. Losing 30% to 40% of your money over a short period can be scary. But those losses should be temporary. Stock market crashes don't go on forever, and in the past, they've always been followed by an even longer period of gains.