You know you're Upper Middle Class if... (divorced, millionaires, credit card)
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I found the original post humorous but so boring I did not read it all. Somebody definitely has too much time on their hands. Maybe a hobby would help.
Interesting list. My quibble is that it’s too skewed to consumer-items, defining “class” too much by one’s purchases, one’s abode, one’s shopping habits and so forth. It also leans more towards “middle” than “upper”. I’d offer the following amendments:
1. You spend only a small portion of your income, either investing the remainder, or plowing it into a business, or donating it to charity.
2. You speak multiple foreign languages – fluently – and attend business meetings or social functions where such fluency is expected.
3. Your house is filled with books in the aforementioned languages, which you actually read with some regularity.
4. Your conversation is peppered with literary references, and you smile with bemusement and minor indignation if your interlocutors miss those references.
5. You hold a graduate or professional degree, as did your father, and his father before him, all the way back into the 19th century.
6. Your main career objective is to pursue intellectually stimulating or emotionally fulfilling work, with the remunerative aspect secondary, because you already have an income stream from investments.
7. You scrupulously eschew yardwork or other domestic maintenance, as such agrarian or crafts-pursuits are too gauche for you.
That sounds more like nouveau riche to me ... Middle class (even upper) - still work. They do not primarily get income stream from investments.
We all know there's a huge disparity in what people consider "middle class" in America.. (i.e. in NY a single/childless wall street trader making $300K with bonuses over 1 million considers themselves "middle class" - while a teacher making $50k supporting a family of 3 in Cleveland also considers themselves comfortably middle class) So there's clearly not one list of anything relating to the middle class.
My husband and I are lowbrow living the high life. What category does that put us in?
I'm with you. The better I do, the less I wish to have others know about it. My ultimate goal is to be able to buy and sell the majority of Americans, but not appear to be any more erudite than a third shift laborer.
I recently was paid the ultimate compliment while pretending to shop for a car. The little squirt salesman leaned across the table (when I feigned poverty and an inability to come up with the kind of price he was demanding for his car) and subtly whispered; 'why don't you go home and start saving a down payment and come back when you are in better financial condition." It warmed my heart! (But it also made me realize that these guys prey on the poor, unable to afford anything other than 'the payments'. They overpay HUGE because they have no leverage.
Interesting list. My quibble is that it’s too skewed to consumer-items, defining “class” too much by one’s purchases, one’s abode, one’s shopping habits and so forth. It also leans more towards “middle” than “upper”. I’d offer the following amendments:
1. You spend only a small portion of your income, either investing the remainder, or plowing it into a business, or donating it to charity.
2. You speak multiple foreign languages – fluently – and attend business meetings or social functions where such fluency is expected.
3. Your house is filled with books in the aforementioned languages, which you actually read with some regularity.
4. Your conversation is peppered with literary references, and you smile with bemusement and minor indignation if your interlocutors miss those references.
5. You hold a graduate or professional degree, as did your father, and his father before him, all the way back into the 19th century.
6. Your main career objective is to pursue intellectually stimulating or emotionally fulfilling work, with the remunerative aspect secondary, because you already have an income stream from investments.
7. You scrupulously eschew yardwork or other domestic maintenance, as such agrarian or crafts-pursuits are too gauche for you.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Briolat21
That sounds more like nouveau riche to me ... Middle class (even upper) - still work. They do not primarily get income stream from investments.
I don't understand why some people are getting bent? To me, it was just a light-hearted, interesting, and entertaining repost of something the OP came across. Kinda like those "Sh*t Girls Say" viral vids from last year.
Seems more like the OP is describing stereotypical "yuppies" rather than the actual majority of upper middle class people.
Exactly! Upper middle class is more about cultural erudition and freedom from mainstream personal-finance concerns, than shopping-habits or accumulation of "status" goods.
Interesting list. My quibble is that it’s too skewed to consumer-items, defining “class” too much by one’s purchases, one’s abode, one’s shopping habits and so forth. It also leans more towards “middle” than “upper”. I’d offer the following amendments:
1. You spend only a small portion of your income, either investing the remainder, or plowing it into a business, or donating it to charity.
I disagree. The UMC still work for a living, and their spending typically expands with income.
2. You speak multiple foreign languages – fluently – and attend business meetings or social functions where such fluency is expected.
Probably not. They might have learned a second language, but it's unlikely that it would be a career requirement. A few might have business interests that require fluency (i.e., a doctor who works with primarily Spanish speaking clients or someone who travels overseas frequently), but the vast majority of the U.S. UMC conduct their business in English.
3. Your house is filled with books in the aforementioned languages, which you actually read with some regularity.
Unlikely. However, the UMC are book buyers, even if they never crack the covers. They value knowledge and will buy classic titles, because they think they should, but many never get around to doing the actual reading. If they have children, the kids' bookshelves will be overflowing.
4. Your conversation is peppered with literary references, and you smile with bemusement and minor indignation if your interlocutors miss those references.
Perhaps a small subset of the upper middle class does this, but most are professionals whose reading, if they do much at all, is limited to professional materials.
5. You hold a graduate or professional degree, as did your father, and his father before him, all the way back into the 19th century.
Likely a third generation degree holder, but more than that would be somewhat unusual. You might find grandmothers with teaching or secretarial degrees.
6. Your main career objective is to pursue intellectually stimulating or emotionally fulfilling work, with the remunerative aspect secondary, because you already have an income stream from investments.
In the upper class, yes, but the UMC still concerns itself with income. They value investing and make an attempt at it, even if they don't do it particularly well.
7. You scrupulously eschew yardwork or other domestic maintenance, as such agrarian or crafts-pursuits are too gauche for you.
There is a bit of truth to this, but some UMC types enjoy those pursuits as hobbyists. When the UMC hires out, it may be because their time is better spent improving their own professional skills.
My quibbles noted above in red.
Last edited by randomparent; 07-02-2013 at 02:47 PM..
Exactly! Upper middle class is more about cultural erudition and freedom from mainstream personal-finance concerns, than shopping-habits or accumulation of "status" goods.
I would disagree, especially on the second. UMCs may be financially more savvy because of education and more secure because of income than most, but they still want to see a return on their investment in schooling (many have professional degrees) and work (many never see a real break from work with smartphones, telecommuting, and globalization). Hence they still spend a lot of what they make, and have a lot to show for it.
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Middle class (even upper) - still work. They do not primarily get income stream from investments. 
What category does that put us in? 
