https://www.livenowfox.com/news/middle-class-income-salary-2024
Says “middle class” income in Arlington is $88k-$264k. The highest city listed, Sunnyvale, CA, is $113k-$339k. So according to this, all these DC Metro folks making $400k are definitely not “middle class” and at minimum UMC, even though they can’t “afford private school or trips to europe” or whatever else they think “middle class” means. I know y’all will bash and flame and pick apart. I’ve been around here a long time. |
The majority of the replies on this forum indicate upper middle class to rich. Too many posters on here live in a bubble and have no idea what true middle class is, especially middle class in most of the US.
If your HHI is 200k in DMV, you are doing just fine. Get a grip on a budget and relax. |
Well you definitely need a budget on that income. Good luck. |
I know a lot of people with $200-250K income in the DMV who are mid-30s and lifestyles are heavily subsidized by parents. They budget for vacations and Amazon and then mom and dad swoop in and take care of mortgage, childcare, and private school. With a giant generational wealth transfer occurring right now HHI is in some situations not an accurate indicator of lifestyle or social class. |
Sounds about right - I feel justified in thinking our $250K combined income makes us middle class now 😆 |
I know a lot of people in their mid-40s whose parents have paid for the children to attend private school and are going to fund college now, too. That's a HUGE amount. Our life would be so much easier if we had someone else funding private school (our kids are in public b/c we can't make private school work on our incomes) and if we didn't have to save for college. |
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Why would they still need parents to subsidize at that income? My HHI is $140k and I have no problem budgeting for my family without external help. I consider the fact that I have no debt to be my parents’ significant contribution to my adult finances. |
Arlignton is a bad example. There are a lot of poor people who bring the average down. You won’t find too many families who are not recent immigrants who are “middle class”. |
For the Mass people - I’m shocked to see Quincy in second behind Cambridge |
Where do you live on $140k? Likely you didn’t buy recently in an UMC area around DC. |
Did you read the article? What’s your excuse for #1 Sunnyvale, CA? Poor people there too? |
You understand how statistics like average and median work, right? |
Arlington is full of apartments with subsidized rents, college grads bunking up on $70k salary paying half their income to the rent, and retirees living off savings (ie no income) in paid off houses bought for $200k. If you look at the “middle classes” income for families living in a SFH, it’s likely $400k. |
If your parents are giving you money for the mortgage, childcare and tuition, then that’s part of your HHI. |
Yes, but you can live quite nicely within a budget on that income. better than the majority of americans |