Are you wealthy?

March 28th, 2007 · No Comments

This subject came up in a conversation a while back. While most of the people in the discussion claimed to be middle class. No one agreed on what exactly is middle class.

Not long ago a Walmart slide show broke its customers down into several distinct shopping groups. One group shopping at Walmart is ‘Price Conscious Affluents’. Walmart claimed those made up a small percent of shoppers yet everyone all over the internet claimed to be ‘Price Conscious Affluents’ that week. { I bet I know the focus of Walmart’s next marketing campaign. }

Others said socio-economic status is determined by income. But 100k in NYC is not the same as 100k in most of the Fly Over. I don’t think socio-economic status can be measured in dollars or the square feet of your home.

Poor is when housing is iffy and your children subsist on packaged foods whose main ingredients are corn and chemicals. You are not safe to wander your neighborhood at will and your children’s school does not give them the skills they need to succeed at college. Medical care too is iffy, you may or may not be able to afford the care you need.

Middle class is when you have a comfortable roof over your head. Your children are fed meat, fish, vegetables and fruits. Your children go to a school that allows them the opportunity to attend college and the prep work they need to succeed at college. Your neighborhood is safe at night. Medical care is not a concern.

Wealth is when working is an option. The income from your investments can provide for your needs. If your son drives every business you hand him into the ground, you can just buy him a US presidency or senate seat. Anything less than that isn’t truly wealthy.

So by those definitions most Americans are the middle class beings they claim to be, unless of course they are shopping at Walmart.

Get Rich Slowly an excellent site giving all sorts of tips and information about financial matters.

Money for the rest of us another very good site full of useful tips and information.