How do you define "Middle Class" (driver, buying, phone) - Other Topics - Page 4 - City-Data Forum

JenM · 12-05-2006, 12:12 PM

I think there are places in every state where people are obsessed with "stuff". I see it all of the time: teenage girls dressed to the nines, in car that are worth 3X the cost of my house! But I have to wonder, are they truly happy? I mean you could have all of the money in the world, but it won't buy you a great family who love and care for you. Like I tell my husband all of the time," I'd rather have you and live in a card board box, than have all of the riches in the world and no one to love!"

poprocksncoke · 12-05-2006, 12:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JenM

I think there are places in every state where people are obsessed with "stuff". I see it all of the time: teenage girls dressed to the nines, in car that are worth 3X the cost of my house! But I have to wonder, are they truly happy? I mean you could have all of the money in the world, but it won't buy you a great family who love and care for you. Like I tell my husband all of the time," I'd rather have you and live in a card board box, than have all of the riches in the world and no one to love!"

That's the way a lot of people should think. I think alot of the people that have those overly expensive things that they don't "need", were people that didn't get those luxuries growing up. I mean, look at alot of the actors. They come from broken homes, and drug/abuse backgrounds.. they make it big and live alone in a 8 bedroom 5 bath house worth millions. It's like since they didn't ever get those things in their life, they get a taste of nicer things, and go all out. Most people don't appreciate love, family and friends the way they should because they go all out on luxuries, and those fill their mind with certain expectations out of life.

mystree · 12-05-2006, 12:59 PM

Quote:

I think there are places in every state where people are obsessed with "stuff". I see it all of the time: teenage girls dressed to the nines, in car that are worth 3X the cost of my house! But I have to wonder, are they truly happy? I mean you could have all of the money in the world, but it won't buy you a great family who love and care for you. Like I tell my husband all of the time," I'd rather have you and live in a card board box, than have all of the riches in the world and no one to love!"

AMEN...The way I look at it you are as rich as you believe you are,and if you are measuring that on your money and your materialistic goodies it's sad really.

Need_affordable_home · 12-05-2006, 01:34 PM

anyone rich enough for a $500k house arent middle class in my opinion. That kind of money can actually get you a mansion(a real one 10,000+ square feet) in certain cheap towns and cities. $23k a year doesnt seem enough to support yourself and your children. I would have a hard time supporting myself and thats without vacations or luxuries.

poprocksncoke · 12-05-2006, 01:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Need_affordable_home

anyone rich enough for a $500k house arent middle class in my opinion. That kind of money can actually get you a mansion(a real one 10,000+ square feet) in certain cheap towns and cities. $23k a year doesnt seem enough to support yourself and your children. I would have a hard time supporting myself and thats without vacations or luxuries.

It's all dependent on what you have on your plate to begin with. I could probably live off that salary if my husband and I didn't have 2 new cars we are paying on, and credit card debt. If I take out those payments alone, I would free up over 800.00 a month! I could do a lot with 800.00 extra dollars!

Need_affordable_home · 12-05-2006, 01:40 PM

well $23k wont get me very far and thats one person. Theres taxes, food, clothing, heating, gas for the car, insurances, shopping, etc. I would have little left, if any. What I have left ill invest for my retirement. I would need to live in a place with very low costs of living like Oil city where I can get a house for as little as $10k to make it.

CabinFever · 12-05-2006, 01:41 PM

How do most parents today afford to buy their children brand new vehicles?Do these parents also pay full coverage for these new vehicles?It kills me seeing a 16 year old driving around in a 40,000 dollar car or truck.When I was a teen the car of choice was something used and I worked to pay for it and just had liability insurance.

BabyBoomers2 · 12-05-2006, 02:48 PM

Well, I'd say that my wife and I do live a "Middle Class" type lifestyle. We live in a very nice area of south-metro Denver, have an "older" fishing/ski boat, two vehicles, nice electronic stuff and live in a nice house........but, we do have the income to support all of this. Plus, we don't have any children living with us. It's just the wife and I. We also don't go out to eat or to movies that often and we take our lunch to work with us 90% of the time.

2KidsforMe · 12-05-2006, 02:58 PM

Thanks everyone for your responses. One thing that has become apparant is that the definition for "middle class" is very subjective, and varies greatly from one area to the next. Also, I too believe our expectations are constantly changing. What was once a luxury now becomes neccessary. Heck, I think of myself as middle class, but the home I live in now I would have thought belonged to rich folk when I was a kid. I grew up in the 1980's in a 850 sq ft post-war cracker box in Southern CA. We had one car. Everyone I knew did too. Now, what seems to be the norm around here is a 4 bed/3bath 2800 sq ft colonial, with two late model higher end cars in the driveway, one of which must be an SUV. wow! And it's not just about income. It really is about how much of that income you actually get to keep. Taxes, insurance, funding your own retirement, housing costs, college tuition, basic neccesities, they all seem to eat up a larger portion of our income then in previous generations. Like my father in law always tells me, it's not how much you make, but how much you keep that matters.

MoMark · 12-05-2006, 03:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 2KidsforMe

Thanks everyone for your responses. One thing that has become apparant is that the definition for "middle class" is very subjective, and varies greatly from one area to the next. Also, I too believe our expectations are constantly changing. What was once a luxury now becomes neccessary. Heck, I think of myself as middle class, but the home I live in now I would have thought belonged to rich folk when I was a kid. I grew up in the 1980's in a 850 sq ft post-war cracker box in Southern CA. We had one car. Everyone I knew did too. Now, what seems to be the norm around here is a 4 bed/3bath 2800 sq ft colonial, with two late model higher end cars in the driveway, one of which must be an SUV. wow! And it's not just about income. It really is about how much of that income you actually get to keep. Taxes, insurance, funding your own retirement, housing costs, college tuition, basic neccesities, they all seem to eat up a larger portion of our income then in previous generations. Like my father in law always tells me, it's not how much you make, but how much you keep that matters.

Excellent observations and, from my point of view, exactly right. I too grew up in California (mostly) in a house my parents got help from my grandparents buying for $28,000 (I think that is what was paid for it) in 1968. It was a typical non-luxurious but practical house for the time, 3 bedrooms, two baths in a neighorhood of the same type of houses. We had one car, a black Ford my mother loved and had named "Mariah". And your father-in-law is right as well in my opinion. If only more people had that philosophy.