What’s the different between upper middle class and upper class?

[Anonymous]

What are the biggest differences in lifestyle?

[Anonymous]

Upper middle class goes to Hawaii. Upper class has a condo in Hawaii.

Upper middle either lives in a great school district or sends their kids to private school. Upper class does boarding school.

Upper middle class has a cleaning lady once or twice a week. Upper class has a housekeeper.

[Anonymous]

It depends on how much money you have in the bank/investments. Just because you have a condo in Hawaii, you could still be highly leveraged.

[Anonymous]

Upper middle class the staff show up to the house for work. Upper class the staff live on the estate grounds.

[Anonymous]

Class doesn’t mean much in the US.

What you are really asking is the difference between being a high earner and being wealthy.

If you make a bunch of money but also have a mortgage and are saving for college/retirement/etc then you are upper middle class.

If you have a lot of money in investments and can live comfortably off the income from said money without drawing it down then you are wealthy.

Most upper middle class people aspire to become wealthy but obviously not all succeed.

[Anonymous]

One is income based the other is an antiquated societal class system based purely on genealogy and breeding.

[Anonymous]

Upper middle has at least some income through a w-2 and actually needs to work to maintain their lifestyle/savings.

Upper class can fully sustain themselves with investments.

[Anonymous]

One has to work and one doesn’t.

[Anonymous]

Upper middle class have jobs (working wealthy). Upper class chair boards of nonprofits for work.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Upper middle class goes to Hawaii. Upper class has a condo in Hawaii.

Upper middle either lives in a great school district or sends their kids to private school. Upper class does boarding school.

Upper middle class has a cleaning lady once or twice a week. Upper class has a housekeeper.

Many US boarding schools have close to 50% on significant financial aid, much like top colleges.

Upper class is now Swiss boarding schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Upper middle has at least some income through a w-2 and actually needs to work to maintain their lifestyle/savings.

Upper class can fully sustain themselves with investments.

This.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Upper middle has at least some income through a w-2 and actually needs to work to maintain their lifestyle/savings.

Upper class can fully sustain themselves with investments.

Plenty of FIRE people “sustain themselves with investments.” But they are living on $100k a year in a LCOL area. That doesn’t make them upper class.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Upper middle class goes to Hawaii. Upper class has a condo in Hawaii.

Upper middle either lives in a great school district or sends their kids to private school. Upper class does boarding school.

Upper middle class has a cleaning lady once or twice a week. Upper class has a housekeeper.

Many US boarding schools have close to 50% on significant financial aid, much like top colleges.

Upper class is now Swiss boarding schools.

Top colleges and boarding schools are like a U-shaped distribution. Kids on substantial Financial Aid and kids who are very well-off.

Very few people in the middle.

[Anonymous]

Upper middle class earn a nice income $250k+ from working.

Upper class have typical annual investment returns of $300k+ and they likely work additionally.

Im in the second category, even though we have vacationed in Hawaii (no condo) and our cleaning lady comes only biweekly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Upper middle class earn a nice income $250k+ from working.

Upper class have typical annual investment returns of $300k+ and they likely work additionally.

Im in the second category, even though we have vacationed in Hawaii (no condo) and our cleaning lady comes only biweekly.

Is 300k in investments and an office job really upper class nowadays?