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What about someone who has 2 or 3 million dollars worth of assets (real estate, investments, cash, dividends and interest, or other liquidate-able assets like art or antiques) and no liabilities other than normal living expenses? Food, gas, utilities, etc. That person could have an income of less than 90K and do just fine especially if it was from things like tax-free muni bonds.
According to clamboy's list that person would be Working Class based on income but in reality he/she would be wealthy. Or at least Upper Middle Class.
On the other extreme you could have someone with an income of 1 million or more but is up to the wazoo in debt and other liabilities.
My list was based on "Net Worth Class" rather than just straight income. Sorry, should have made that clear originally I guess.
Class and money are two different things. What matters is how a person earns and spends their money as well as how a person acts, etc... Sure it helps to have lots of money, but it is extremely difficult to change your class.
Lots of working class folk who earn six figures cops, plumbers, pipe fitters, etc...they think they are upper class when they are what they always were - working class, but just well paid.
Take Joe (fictional person) earns $120,000/year as a pipe fitter. Lives in in the north part of East Islip. He went to High School, belongs to the Union, drives a company work truck, has a big screen TV, enjoys drinking domestic beer and smoking Marlboro cigarettes. Is he part of the upper class? or even middle class?
Class and money are two different things. What matters is how a person earns and spends their money as well as how a person acts, etc... Sure it helps to have lots of money, but it is extremely difficult to change your class.
Lots of working class folk who earn six figures cops, plumbers, pipe fitters, etc...they think they are upper class when they are what they always were - working class, but just well paid.
Take Joe (fictional person) earns $120,000/year as a pipe fitter. Lives in in the north part of East Islip. He went to High School, belongs to the Union, drives a company work truck, has a big screen TV, enjoys drinking domestic beer and smoking Marlboro cigarettes. Is he part of the upper class? or even middle class?
Your example illustrates the difference between economic and socio-economic status. In your example, someone w/ the same income, with a graduate degree might be considered middle to upper middle class.
That's right. Now lets say Joe's next door neighbor, William, earns $120,000/year as well. However, William subscribes to National Geographic, has his kids taking tennis lessons, doesn't drink or smoke, drives a Honda Accord, wears a shirt and tie to work, and worries a great deal about his property values. Oh...and William hates the fact that his neighbor Joe likes to put up a million and one Christmas lights attracting all sorts of gawkers. Is William working class? middle class? or upper class?
It's getting harder and harder to differentiate between economic classes based on income. Lets leave socio-economic class entirely out for a moment.
I would say that the vast majority of people living on Long Island fall in the middle class. There are some enclaves of the upper middle and upper class but geographically speaking, Long Island is dominated by the middle class. Most of the working class folks on long island also qualify as middle class, economically speaking. The well paid working blue collar and average white collar professionals tend to make around the same nowadays.
The lower classes are restricted to a few enclaves or simply have left the island altogether. Why scrape together a living on Long Island when you can do perfectly fine elsewhere? Keep in mind again, I've left socioeconomic class out.
Last edited by MiddleIslander; 08-21-2007 at 03:45 PM..
It's getting harder and harder to differentiate between economic classes based on income. Lets leave socio-economic class entirely out for a moment.
I would say that the vast majority of people living on Long Island fall in the middle class. There are some enclaves of the upper middle and upper class but geographically speaking, Long Island is dominated by the middle class. Most of the working class folks on long island also qualify as middle class, economically speaking. The well paid working blue collar and average white collar professionals tend to make around the same nowadays.
The lower classes are restricted to a few enclaves or simply have left the island altogether. Why scrape together a living on Long Island when you can do perfectly fine elsewhere? Keep in mind again, I've left socioeconomic class out.
You raise some very good points MI.
I think if you took the earnings of the average LI family elsewhere in the USA they'd be Upper Middle to wealthy.
If the the vast majority on LI are indeed Midddle Class...I do believe we've outfoxed/taxed ourselves and the vast majority are now falling behind.
Clamboy is correct. Compared to most other places all over the US Long Islanders do earn much more. That is exactly why so many Long Islanders are frustrated when they move to Florida or North Carolina. They find that wages are extremely low. All those states have right-to-work laws and are hostile to all unions.
However, if you play your cards right and are able to buy a home with all cash using your Long Island home equity then I think the wage difference matters less.
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