On Thu, 02 Oct 2014 10:02:08 -0400, KC wrote:

On 10/2/2014 9:53 AM, Mr. Luddite wrote:
On 10/2/2014 8:50 AM, KC wrote:
One helpful yardstick to judge whether you're middle class: Median
household income was $51,017 in 2012, according to the most recent U.S.
census data. Robert Reich, a professor of Public Policy at the
University of California-Berkeley and former Secretary of Labor, has
suggested the middle class be defined as households making 50 percent
higher and lower than the median, which would mean the average middle
class annual income is $25,500 to $76,500.


I am "guessing" the three most vocal "middle class" folks here (all who
seem to own or boats worth a couple years income, and homes all over the
country), are really "middle class"... no matter how much they insist
they are. Nothing wrong with being rich, but to try to assume you
struggle like "middle class" folks is comical...


I'll have to work on figuring out what you are saying. Went over my head.



Just wondering where the bar is. Several here have noted that they are
in the "middle class" but I am not sure we are all on the same page as
to what is "middle class". Most rich folks I have known claim to be
"middle class", but I am pretty sure their def is different than mine.
So for the sake of conversation, when I say "middle class" I am not
referring to folks who made 6 figures during their working years... I am
talking about folks who are making between say, 40-80 in general upper
middle class might get you up to 100,000 a year. Of course there is
always the exceptions like NYC, etc...

===

In the NYC area the upper middle class starts around $300 to 400K
annual income these days. My oldest son the lawyer just bought a
condo in Brooklyn, decent place but only about 1200 sq ft and in a so
so kind of area. It was somewhere in the vicinity of $1M plus he
pays both NY and NYC income taxes.
Youngest son bought a decent but not great house in the NY 'burbs,
older place that needed a lot of work, around 2,000 sq ft in a very
nice town. It set him back over $900K. He also pays NY and NYC
income taxes.

To be considered wealthy in the NYC area takes an annual family income
of about $1m + or a net worth in excess of about $10M. Believe it or
not there are quite a few people who qualify.