Upper-Middle Class vs Middle-Class Lifestyles

[Anonymous]

Someone on another thread suggested that it takes $10 million a year to be upper class, implying that someone earning $5 million a year is merely upper-middle. This speaks to the skewed perspective of DCUM posters, and I thought it would interesting to inject a dose of reality. The following is how I would describe a few tyoical distinctions of an upper-middle lifestyle (that approximately 15% of the population enjoy) versus the middle-class lifestyle (that about 50% of the population lives).

Upper-middle class:

1) Housing: A 2500+ SF single-family house in the suburbs, or an upscale townhouse or condo (or luxury apartment) in an affluent suburbs or the city proper (think Berhesda, McLean, DC)
2) Vacations: a 2-week luxury cruise to the Baltics, a winter ski trip, or a few trips to the (owned) beach condo or house
3) Entertainment: dinner at the Capital Grille, Kennedy Center opera or ballet, club-level seats at the Nationals
4) Education: Public school in a better-rated district or private

Middle-class:

1) Housing: An older house of less than 2500 sf in the suburbs, a townhouse, or an apartment in the suburbs (think Gaithersburg, Silver Spring, Rockville)
2) Vacations: a 1-week cruise to the Caribbean, a 4-day trip trip to Disneyworld, or a week in a beach rental
3) Entertsinment: Dinner at Outback, the movies, regular,stadium seating at the ballpark
4) Education: Public school

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Someone on another thread suggested that it takes $10 million a year to be upper class, implying that someone earning $5 million a year is merely upper-middle. This speaks to the skewed perspective of DCUM posters, and I thought it would interesting to inject a dose of reality. The following is how I would describe a few tyoical distinctions of an upper-middle lifestyle (that approximately 15% of the population enjoy) versus the middle-class lifestyle (that about 50% of the population lives).

Upper-middle class:

1) Housing: A 2500+ SF single-family house in the suburbs, or an upscale townhouse or condo (or luxury apartment) in an affluent suburbs or the city proper (think Berhesda, McLean, DC)
2) Vacations: a 2-week luxury cruise to the Baltics, a winter ski trip, or a few trips to the (owned) beach condo or house
3) Entertainment: dinner at the Capital Grille, Kennedy Center opera or ballet, club-level seats at the Nationals
4) Education: Public school in a better-rated district or private

Middle-class:

1) Housing: An older house of less than 2500 sf in the suburbs, a townhouse, or an apartment in the suburbs (think Gaithersburg, Silver Spring, Rockville)
2) Vacations: a 1-week cruise to the Caribbean, a 4-day trip trip to Disneyworld, or a week in a beach rental
3) Entertsinment: Dinner at Outback, the movies, regular,stadium seating at the ballpark
4) Education: Public school

Baseball is very middle class.

[Anonymous]

Crazy

All subjective

Why do you care?

[Anonymous]

I have done half the stuff in you describe in UMC list and half the things you describe in MC list. I'm poor.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Someone on another thread suggested that it takes $10 million a year to be upper class, implying that someone earning $5 million a year is merely upper-middle. This speaks to the skewed perspective of DCUM posters, and I thought it would interesting to inject a dose of reality. The following is how I would describe a few tyoical distinctions of an upper-middle lifestyle (that approximately 15% of the population enjoy) versus the middle-class lifestyle (that about 50% of the population lives).

Upper-middle class:

1) Housing: A 2500+ SF single-family house in the suburbs, or an upscale townhouse or condo (or luxury apartment) in an affluent suburbs or the city proper (think Berhesda, McLean, DC)
2) Vacations: a 2-week luxury cruise to the Baltics, a winter ski trip, or a few trips to the (owned) beach condo or house
3) Entertainment: dinner at the Capital Grille, Kennedy Center opera or ballet, club-level seats at the Nationals
4) Education: Public school in a better-rated district or private

Middle-class:

1) Housing: An older house of less than 2500 sf in the suburbs, a townhouse, or an apartment in the suburbs (think Gaithersburg, Silver Spring, Rockville)
2) Vacations: a 1-week cruise to the Caribbean, a 4-day trip trip to Disneyworld, or a week in a beach rental
3) Entertsinment: Dinner at Outback, the movies, regular,stadium seating at the ballpark
4) Education: Public school

Baseball is very middle class.

Generally, yes. But those expensive club seats aren't being scooped up by middle-class families - and they sell well. It's the upper.middle who don't blink at spending $400 or $500 to take the family to the game.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Crazy

All subjective

Why do you care?

Because it bugs me when people go to Europe on vacation, have their kids in private, and then cry that they're middle class.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have done half the stuff in you describe in UMC list and half the things you describe in MC list. I'm poor.

If you've done half the stuff in the upper-middle class list, you're not poor. That's my point.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Someone on another thread suggested that it takes $10 million a year to be upper class, implying that someone earning $5 million a year is merely upper-middle. This speaks to the skewed perspective of DCUM posters, and I thought it would interesting to inject a dose of reality. The following is how I would describe a few tyoical distinctions of an upper-middle lifestyle (that approximately 15% of the population enjoy) versus the middle-class lifestyle (that about 50% of the population lives).

Upper-middle class:

1) Housing: A 2500+ SF single-family house in the suburbs, or an upscale townhouse or condo (or luxury apartment) in an affluent suburbs or the city proper (think Berhesda, McLean, DC)
2) Vacations: a 2-week luxury cruise to the Baltics, a winter ski trip, or a few trips to the (owned) beach condo or house
3) Entertainment: dinner at the Capital Grille, Kennedy Center opera or ballet, club-level seats at the Nationals
4) Education: Public school in a better-rated district or private

Middle-class:

1) Housing: An older house of less than 2500 sf in the suburbs, a townhouse, or an apartment in the suburbs (think Gaithersburg, Silver Spring, Rockville)
2) Vacations: a 1-week cruise to the Caribbean, a 4-day trip trip to Disneyworld, or a week in a beach rental
3) Entertsinment: Dinner at Outback, the movies, regular,stadium seating at the ballpark
4) Education: Public school

Baseball is very middle class.

Generally, yes. But those expensive club seats aren't being scooped up by middle-class families - and they sell well. It's the upper.middle who don't blink at spending $400 or $500 to take the family to the game.

Sigh.

UMC don’t pay for those seats. They are company seats, and mom or dad take the kids when they can’t come up with a business purpose for them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Someone on another thread suggested that it takes $10 million a year to be upper class, implying that someone earning $5 million a year is merely upper-middle. This speaks to the skewed perspective of DCUM posters, and I thought it would interesting to inject a dose of reality. The following is how I would describe a few tyoical distinctions of an upper-middle lifestyle (that approximately 15% of the population enjoy) versus the middle-class lifestyle (that about 50% of the population lives).

Upper-middle class:

1) Housing: A 2500+ SF single-family house in the suburbs, or an upscale townhouse or condo (or luxury apartment) in an affluent suburbs or the city proper (think Berhesda, McLean, DC)
2) Vacations: a 2-week luxury cruise to the Baltics, a winter ski trip, or a few trips to the (owned) beach condo or house
3) Entertainment: dinner at the Capital Grille, Kennedy Center opera or ballet, club-level seats at the Nationals
4) Education: Public school in a better-rated district or private

Middle-class:

1) Housing: An older house of less than 2500 sf in the suburbs, a townhouse, or an apartment in the suburbs (think Gaithersburg, Silver Spring, Rockville)
2) Vacations: a 1-week cruise to the Caribbean, a 4-day trip trip to Disneyworld, or a week in a beach rental
3) Entertsinment: Dinner at Outback, the movies, regular,stadium seating at the ballpark
4) Education: Public school

Baseball is very middle class.

Generally, yes. But those expensive club seats aren't being scooped up by middle-class families - and they sell well. It's the upper.middle who don't blink at spending $400 or $500 to take the family to the game.

Sigh.

UMC don’t pay for those seats. They are company seats, and mom or dad take the kids when they can’t come up with a business purpose for them.

Depends on what you're thinking of. I said "club-level." NOT box seats. Believe me, families pay for the club seats so they have quick access to air conditioning, eating in comfort (see: AC), and just generally better viewing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have done half the stuff in you describe in UMC list and half the things you describe in MC list. I'm poor.

If you're poor, are you on any type of government assistance program? And what exactly in the upper-middle class lisr have you done? Sorry, bit I don't think people accepting food stamps or whatever should spend money on a fancy cruise or expensive steakhouse.

[Anonymous]

We have all of the trappings and more of the upper middle class lifestyle you listed but our income is only 5% of 5 million. Why do you care OP? Is this something you aspire to? Is wealth disparity something you hate? I believe economic justice is the next big battlefront. I'm less sword about the middle class than the ones who are truely suffering.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have done half the stuff in you describe in UMC list and half the things you describe in MC list. I'm poor.

If you're poor, are you on any type of government assistance program? And what exactly in the upper-middle class lisr have you done? Sorry, bit I don't think people accepting food stamps or whatever should spend money on a fancy cruise or expensive steakhouse.

What people don't get is that rich people and corporations get government handsouts all the time, often in exchange for promises of tax revenue or job creation that never manifests, which in turn frees up money to buy fancy things like cruises and club seats

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We have all of the trappings and more of the upper middle class lifestyle you listed but our income is only 5% of 5 million. Why do you care OP? Is this something you aspire to? Is wealth disparity something you hate? I believe economic justice is the next big battlefront. I'm less sword about the middle class than the ones who are truely suffering.

Well of course you can have the trappings of an UMC class lifestyle with $250k. That's good money! That was my point. That the other poster who said $5 million was only UMC was completed out of touch.

And I answered your question earlier, but I'll say again: It bugs me when people who take internstional travel, put their kids in private school, and drop $300 on dinner cry about being middle class. It is a putdown to people who are truly middle class, saving $50 from their paychecks all year so they can rent an apartment at the beach in the summer. (I'm not talking about myself. I'm just empathetic.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have done half the stuff in you describe in UMC list and half the things you describe in MC list. I'm poor.

If you're poor, are you on any type of government assistance program? And what exactly in the upper-middle class lisr have you done? Sorry, bit I don't think people accepting food stamps or whatever should spend money on a fancy cruise or expensive steakhouse.

What people don't get is that rich people and corporations get government handsouts all the time, often in exchange for promises of tax revenue or job creation that never manifests, which in turn frees up money to buy fancy things like cruises and club seats

So you're fine with someone taking taxpayer-funded food stamps, and with the miney she saves on groceries, goes out to Morton's for dinner? I'd tether her take the money she's spending in Morton's and buy 2 weeks worth of groceries on her own.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have done half the stuff in you describe in UMC list and half the things you describe in MC list. I'm poor.

If you're poor, are you on any type of government assistance program? And what exactly in the upper-middle class lisr have you done? Sorry, bit I don't think people accepting food stamps or whatever should spend money on a fancy cruise or expensive steakhouse.

What people don't get is that rich people and corporations get government handsouts all the time, often in exchange for promises of tax revenue or job creation that never manifests, which in turn frees up money to buy fancy things like cruises and club seats

So you're fine with someone taking taxpayer-funded food stamps, and with the miney she saves on groceries, goes out to Morton's for dinner? I'd tether her take the money she's spending in Morton's and buy 2 weeks worth of groceries on her own.

This we lfare quenn myth has been busted so many times. Do your research. It only helps the truly rich if the bottom 90% are fighting over pennies whole they Hoover up the Benjamins