Reply to FAFSA - is middle-class waste time applying?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][b]These threads always get derailed by bickering. [/b]If there are state/federal funds involved, even if it's designated merit, the school will likely require the FAFSA just to complete their accounting, confirm there's no double dipping and no additional eligibility. This is a case where OP would complete the FAFSA. The FAFSA is less info than a tax return. I don't see how a fed household would find this intrusive, cumbersome or unexpected. [/quote]

I thought about this.  If you google  “what is middle class”, it will usually be some sort of distribution for the region area and break that up into tiers.  But if you search things like how much did you need to make to afford x or y back  when we grew up - potentially people in that middle income range could afford a home, healthcare, and if it was a good job with a pension, they also had a retirement. I live in a neighborhood where people had 4-5 kids or more (back in the 1960’s) , sometimes one income, sent the kids to Catholic school and they could retire with a pension and healthcare.  Fast forward to today and say 120K for a family of four in Alexandria is considered middle income with 49% adults in the region - what that lifestyle looks like for middle income is different now than it was when we were growing up and it’s hard to say it’s a pick 3 - do you want to buy a single family home, fund retirement, have adequate healthcare, be able to have a parent stay home, pay for college etc.  This shifts that you have to be in that tier beyond middle income to afford what back is generation ago was middle class.  And one more income tier to live the lifestyle that was x years ago considered upper middle class.  [/quote]

We have a million times more wants than families had in the 60s and 70s.

[b]What was considered middle class back then is comparable to what is considered lower class now.

Such as 3 generations in one home, 4 to 6 kids in a 3 bedroom - 1 bathroom house with no AC, a 10x12 ft eat in kitchen, no dishwasher, 1 small TV, 1 family car, eating out only on birthdays/special occasion, no tracel sports - SAT prep - private voice lessons - dance competition team - specialized summer camps,  kids getting jobs around middle school like babysitting/mowing lawns, no flying vacations...[/b]

300K is rich and everyone posting here has a far more luxurious lifestyle than any middle class family from the 60s or 70s.[/quote]

That’s an interesting point.  But people, making 150K have more than 1 car, kids are on dance competition teams etc.  Even if you didn’t do all those things, that doesn’t mean someone making 150K today could easily afford a home, raise 2 kids, retire, health insurance, pay for their kids to go to college (especially an 80K/year private college). There has been a rise in costs for everyone for the basics of “middle class” lifestyle- home ownership, food, retirement, healthcare and raising kids (https://www.businessinsider.com/how-much-costs-raise-kid-us-americans-have-fewer-kids-2022-8?op=1) even for a no frill lifestyle.  At the same time there is a rise in consumerism (or so it feels), that people don’t see having one car, no cell phones, kids sharing a room, no private lessons of any kind, no AC etc, but having a home  as being as  reached middle class lifestyle.

I’m not saying someone that makes 300K would qualify for need based aid.  I’m just saying it makes sense to me why everyone is bickering. Middle income is not the same as middle-class lifestyle even though we act like it is the same thing. And we all have our own perceptions of what sort of lifestyle one should have making x amount of money when one is still working for their money opposed to their money working for them.  I will stand by the statement that someone making 300K late in life (say kids in high school) and no family assistance is not living a baller/MTV Cribs lifestyle in the DC area unless they had helluva investments.  And yes, that would put them in the top 15% (at least) of income for this area and they won’t qualify for aid. And to the people that say they fully affording everything we associate with a 2023 “middle class lifestyle” on 150K in the DC area with zero financial help from anyone - they need to drop the budget/financial details and teach a masterclass because honestly that’s the blueprint I needed to know in my mid-20’s.
[/quote]

On $150K or so, our kids are in multiple expensive activities, private music lessons, we own our house (small, cheaper one), have college savings for a state college, retirement savings, and basically can do what we want within reason.  We on the surface look middle class but we've managed our money well and made it work.  So, I don't get screaming poverty.  We could pay for a private college between income and savings if we need to.  No family help (not even for babysitting in an emergency let alone money).  And, we've had the normal SN kid, parent needing help, and other bad things happen.

But, what we aren't doing is expensive vacations a few times a year or even yearly, we shop at Aldi's, Lidl, Walmart and similar stores for food, stick with lower cost restaurants, etc.[/quote]

DP. I don't think any of us at 150k are screaming poverty. It's the 250k, 300k and 500k people "lamenting. " Oh, the injustice![facepalm][/quote]

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