some points - pete has some thoughts on income

1) poor people - living hand to mouth, no savings, never going to retire, will end up living on socsec once they can

2) rich/wealthy - can isolate themselves from the rest of us (someone else pointed out this nice distinction)

could retire today and never work again and live their current lifestyle or close enough to not matter

3) the middle - everyone else

4) yes, the middle would include 200k, even though 200k is light years away from 50k

5) but

200k is the top 5%, and they are NOT like the middle.

They can retire early. They have massive safety nets.

So we really should make another group.

Damn Comfortable

Not rich/wealthy, but not middle.

so let's try again

1) poor - 0k to 30k - 30% of the people

2) middle - 30k to 200k - 65% of the people - AKA - The MIDDLE

3) damn comfortable - 200k to 500k? 4.8% of the people - really not the middle

4) rich/wealthy - 500k+

/you can argue where the 200k and 500k break are, esp with COLA (NYC vs detroit for example), but the concept stands

/damn comfortable lowers a little, as you get older, pay off your house, have more in savings and retirement, etc

--- more thoughts

BMFPitt: pkellmey: I also know several middle class couples who have never balanced a checkbook and have no idea what their current balance is.

A literal, physical checkbook? I doubt anyone under 30 has.

in some ways, this might be an interesting and more useful split for middle

1) do you bother to balance your checking or even know how much is there? (electronically or not)

2) do you carry a balance on your credit cards, even for only a month or three around xmas?
3) is your house paid off?

no house? lower middle (or young or moving a lot)

carry a balance? middle

house paid off? upper middle