Family of Four on 90k - An Upper Middle Class Existence

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What is your worldview?

Do you tithe?

Christian.

Yes. 10% gross.

Why the arrogance????

Excuse me?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Living in a 3-BD house in a non-great neighborhood and taking a few domestic trips to see family is NOT upper-middle class, OP.

It's comfortably middle class, but it's nowhere near upper-middle class. Heck, before I had my kids DH and I were maxing out retirement and our HHI was only $65K. We had no debt, bought a new car with cash, and took twice-yearly international trips. Firmly middle class.

Frankly, I think the cutoff for upper-middle is if you are close to not having to work anymore for money. Not stuck in the rat race to make ends meet.

We live in a great neighborhood. What's wrong with taking domestic trips?

Another skewed dcum doldrums troll.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What is the worst thing you have ever done?

Do you think you ever do things that makes Jesus sad?

Go back from whence you came. Nobody wants your negativity here.

[Anonymous]

[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Where do you live? When did you buy?[/quote]


Bought in 2009. DH bought a townhome in 2002, rode the appreciation, and put money into our current place.[/quote]


That is very lucky timing. Where do you live?[/quote]

Lucky how? Living wisely and taking advantage of market conditions is hardly luck.[/quote]

Are you serious? You were lucky enough to marry someone who purchased pre bubble. You didn't "time the market". I'm slightly older than you and was one year into my job in 2002. It takes time to save up a down payment. By the time we did, we were screwed market-wise. You're acting as if you waited it out to purchase at the right time. You were lucky. [/quote]

It was not all luck.

You seem angry.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Living in a 3-BD house in a non-great neighborhood and taking a few domestic trips to see family is NOT upper-middle class, OP.

It's comfortably middle class, but it's nowhere near upper-middle class. Heck, before I had my kids DH and I were maxing out retirement and our HHI was only $65K. We had no debt, bought a new car with cash, and took twice-yearly international trips. Firmly middle class.

Frankly, I think the cutoff for upper-middle is if you are close to not having to work anymore for money. Not stuck in the rat race to make ends meet.

We live in a great neighborhood. What's wrong with taking domestic trips?

Another skewed dcum doldrums troll.

Not PP, but I don't think they are trolling. They are rightfully saying that this sounds like a fine lifestyle, but it's quite the stretch to call it upper middle class.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can you show us your budget and monthly expenses? Maybe you can teach me a few things with money management? Tnx.

Best advice I can give is to set a goal and stick to it - don't stray from a well planned budget, avoid debt, and prepare for emergencies with cash.

Getting to a solid financial position takes time, effort, and perseverance.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Living in a 3-BD house in a non-great neighborhood and taking a few domestic trips to see family is NOT upper-middle class, OP.

It's comfortably middle class, but it's nowhere near upper-middle class. Heck, before I had my kids DH and I were maxing out retirement and our HHI was only $65K. We had no debt, bought a new car with cash, and took twice-yearly international trips. Firmly middle class.

Frankly, I think the cutoff for upper-middle is if you are close to not having to work anymore for money. Not stuck in the rat race to make ends meet.

We live in a great neighborhood. What's wrong with taking domestic trips?

Another skewed dcum doldrums troll.

Not PP, but I don't think they are trolling. They are rightfully saying that this sounds like a fine lifestyle, but it's quite the stretch to call it upper middle class.

I grew up lower middle class - this is definitely an upper middle class lifestyle.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Living in a 3-BD house in a non-great neighborhood and taking a few domestic trips to see family is NOT upper-middle class, OP.

It's comfortably middle class, but it's nowhere near upper-middle class. Heck, before I had my kids DH and I were maxing out retirement and our HHI was only $65K. We had no debt, bought a new car with cash, and took twice-yearly international trips. Firmly middle class.

Frankly, I think the cutoff for upper-middle is if you are close to not having to work anymore for money. Not stuck in the rat race to make ends meet.

It used to be that lower middle class was blue collar and upper middle class was white collar and college.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yup, you read it right.

I'm SICK of reading the "500k, woe is me threads". I'm also sick of seeing the bashing going on towards the single woman in the other thread.

Don't read them!

I can't decide what is worse- rich people who complain about being poor or poor people that brag about being rich.

Aren't we all trying to to the best we can? Don't we come to this forum to learn from one another (and commiserate)?

[Anonymous]

OP, it sounds like you made some good financial decisions, but you also had timing on your side. I was still in high school when your DH bought his first place. Now that I'm old enough to buy my first home, prices have already gone up a lot. I literally paid more than double for my house in 2013 than the prior owners paid in 2003. It is depressing trying to become a first time homeowner.

Oh and I'm pregnant with my first. Daycare around me costs close to 2k for infants. I checked with a licensed in-home daycare and it is $1,400/month. Staying home isn't an option because DH and I both have some graduate school loans (though thankfully not a ton like some of our friends).

Since I plan to keep working, home schooling is not an option. We had to pay for a neighborhood with good public schools in NoVa. And we couldn't move super far out because two people spending a ton of time commuting to ther jobs = no one around to make dinner, do daycare pickup/drop off etc.

I think it is truly great that you're making it work on 90k and I agree some of the people who complain about struggling on 500k a year are obnoxious. But your situation is apples and oranges to families who are younger than you and need to live close-in for job reasons and want good school districts.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, it sounds like you made some good financial decisions, but you also had timing on your side. I was still in high school when your DH bought his first place. Now that I'm old enough to buy my first home, prices have already gone up a lot. I literally paid more than double for my house in 2013 than the prior owners paid in 2003. It is depressing trying to become a first time homeowner.

Oh and I'm pregnant with my first. Daycare around me costs close to 2k for infants. I checked with a licensed in-home daycare and it is $1,400/month. Staying home isn't an option because DH and I both have some graduate school loans (though thankfully not a ton like some of our friends).

Since I plan to keep working, home schooling is not an option. We had to pay for a neighborhood with good public schools in NoVa. And we couldn't move super far out because two people spending a ton of time commuting to ther jobs = no one around to make dinner, do daycare pickup/drop off etc.

I think it is truly great that you're making it work on 90k and I agree some of the people who complain about struggling on 500k a year are obnoxious. But your situation is apples and oranges to families who are younger than you and need to live close-in for job reasons and want good school districts.

Thanks for your post.

When we were younger, times were tougher.

You'll get there.

Additionally, priorities are different for each fam. No issues there.

I just couldn't stand folks ganging up on the frugal single girl all the while posting that they can't make it on 6 figures.

Middle class is by definition somewhere around the median income. If higher percentile a of income aren't upper middle class (75th and above), then what is?

Just because the middle class lifestyle has changed doesn't mean that upper incomes are now middle class.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, it sounds like you made some good financial decisions, but you also had timing on your side. I was still in high school when your DH bought his first place. Now that I'm old enough to buy my first home, prices have already gone up a lot. I literally paid more than double for my house in 2013 than the prior owners paid in 2003. It is depressing trying to become a first time homeowner.

Oh and I'm pregnant with my first. Daycare around me costs close to 2k for infants. I checked with a licensed in-home daycare and it is $1,400/month. Staying home isn't an option because DH and I both have some graduate school loans (though thankfully not a ton like some of our friends).

Since I plan to keep working, home schooling is not an option. We had to pay for a neighborhood with good public schools in NoVa. And we couldn't move super far out because two people spending a ton of time commuting to ther jobs = no one around to make dinner, do daycare pickup/drop off etc.

I think it is truly great that you're making it work on 90k and I agree some of the people who complain about struggling on 500k a year are obnoxious. But your situation is apples and oranges to families who are younger than you and need to live close-in for job reasons and want good school districts.

+1 to all of this. Really sick of the late boomers/gen Xers saying, "Well we're upper middle class on 90k, oh but we bought our house in 2009 after the market crash, now it's worth twice as much as we paid for it, why can't others just do what we did!!!!??1" It's not relevant advice to younger people at all. We bought our first house last year and it's a small TH in Fairfax.

[Anonymous]

I'm glad you're happy and managing OP but I would never choose to live under the conditions you've described. Different strokes for different folks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do you have student loans?

Paid them all off in our 20s. I'm 33, DH 34.

OP I am the same age as your husband. How in the world did he have enough for a down payment on a house in 2002 at 22 years old? Truly curious (and jealous)!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You mean that's what HE earns. You earn nothing.

"Public school isn't within our worldview." WTF does that even mean?

Why so angry? When someone reacts so strongly it tells me that they are projecting their own issues.

Um, OP called basically everyone on here pathetic- so who's angry?

Anyone so desperate to post unprompted to defend their lifestyle is insecure, bottom line.