What Net Worth Puts You in the Upper, Middle & Lower Class?
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 1 มิ.ย. 2024
- 🐪 Hump Days Newsletter ➭ humpdays.substack.com
What Net Worth Puts You in the Upper, Middle & Lower Class? We use Census Data to find out.
Global Middle Class Calculator: www.pewresearch.org/short-rea...
USA Middle Class Calculator: www.pewresearch.org/short-rea...
FREE STOCKS:
🏆 WeBull (Get 6-12 Free Stocks worth up to $30,600 when you deposit $100) ➭ a.webull.com/i/HumphreyYang
💸 SoFi Checking & Savings: Get up to 4.20% APY, pay no account fees and earn $250
when you sign up and set up direct deposit. Terms apply ➭ sofi.com/humphrey
🎓 Public ($10 Free Stock) Investing App ➭ pblc.co/humphrey
RESOURCES:
▶️ Join the Patreon Community ➭ / humphreytalks
🐪 Hump Days Newsletter ➭ humpdays.substack.com
💳 My Favorite Credit Cards ➭ cardonomics.com/i/humphrey
FREE GUIDES/TEMPLATES:
🏠 Investing 101 PDF: beacons.ai/humphreytalks/free...
🏖 The Financial Mastersheet: beacons.ai/humphreytalks/free...
🚗 Car Lease Payment Calculator: beacons.ai/humphreytalks/free...
💵 Net Worth Tracker: beacons.ai/humphreytalks/free...
PERSONAL LINKS:
🎥 My TH-cam Setup ➭ kit.co/humphreytalks
🌍 Rickie (Editor) ➭ / coldgamerick
🗞 Twitter ➭ / humphreytalks
📸 Instagram ➭ / humphreytalks
🚀 Tik Tok ➭ / humphreytalks
Timestamps
0:00 - Start Here
0:41 - Lower Class
2:40 - Lower Middle Class
5:03 - Middle Class
7:09 - Upper Middle Class
8:44 - Global Wealth Perspective
10:29 - Upper Class (Top 20%)
📧 GET IN TOUCH: I'd love to hear from you! If you have a longer question, or if you have a business related inquiry, please then send me an email at humphreytalks@gmail.com. I try my best to reply to all e-mail but sometimes I do not have enough time to respond to everyone.
PS: I am not a Financial Advisor, any investment commentary are my opinions only. Some of the links in this description are affiliate links that I do receive a commission for & they help support the channel
Thanks for the continued viewership lately! I love you all, it's been awesome to see. Please subscribe to the channel & Hump Days Newsletter: humpdays.substack.com
Great video as always @Humphrey Yang! It would be interesting to see the quintiles broken out by age range. For example, $600k net worth for a 20 year old would be considered vastly more financially well off when compared to a 65 year old with the same $600k, yet based on the definition in this video they both would be labeled as upper class.
@@robertbobm thanks Robert/bob, will take a look and see if the data is broken down further
你好像吴彦祖啊
That statistic Is BS its the government trying to saying you, you are all right, there is some people who do worst than you and reality. Most of society is lower class and some few are middleclass. Fewer yet upper-class. In italy Lower middle-class is when person has 8 year worth of income as net worth on median salary. And even that is not realy accurate. To divide financial class to brackets is deceiving. From middleclass people is expected some resistance to crisis. And also upperclass is not just upperclass there are people who have 5 million in assets and are thouse who have fewhundread billion and thouse who are between.
@@humphreywelcome to Loudoun county
I have a 3 fund portfolio consisting of 33% S&P, 33% Total stock, and 33% international. I feel a need to focus on complete growth so I went 100% stocks, but does the SP500 and TSM overlap too much to make sense holding both? However I’ve been in the red for a month now. I work hard for my money, so investing is making me a nervous sad wreck. I don’t know if I should sell everything, sit and just wait but watching my portfolio dwindle away is such an eye -sore.
There are many other interesting stocks in many industries that you might follow. You don't have to act on every forecast, so I'll suggest that you work with a financial advisor who can help you choose the best times to purchase and sell the shares or ETFs you want to acquire.
I agree, that's the more reason I prefer my day to day investment decisions being guided by an advisor seeing that their entire skillset is built around going long and short at the same time both employing risk for its asymmetrical upside and laying off risk as a hedge against the inevitable downward turns, coupled with the exclusive information/analysis they have, it's near impossible to not out-perform, been using my advisor for over 2years+ and I've netted over 2.8million.
I actually subscribed for a few trading courses but it didn't help much, been getting suggestions to use a proper financial advisor, how did you go about touching base with your coach?
MICHELE KATHERINE SINGH is the licensed advisor I use. Just research the name. You’d find necessary details to work with a correspondence to set up an appointment.
My needs are kind of unique and complex. I'll contact her nonetheless, and I hope I'm able to make something out of it.
Age 44. $300k net worth. No debt. No Student loans. Modest $70k yearly income. Life is great.
Nicely done
No kid? Kids become a symbol of wealth now because they are so expensive.
I would agree.
I actually think I'm very close to that similar statistic. Not quite there, but close.
I'll take that and be happy.
I grew up extremely poor. I have an upper class net worth but a lower to middle class salary. This is called the power of investing early and living a frugal lifestyle.
The upper class net worth is really lower upper class. Since if you are in the upper class earning buckets you can get there in a few years. The solidly upper class bucket is probably around 2-4 Mil.
Good for you. We are the opposite unfortunately. High income, not good at investing.
Same here. Upper class net worth (and no I'm not house rich even though it's paid off) with a middle class salary. I don't consider myself upper class. I live a lower middle class lifestyle.
@@sorka95032 Your net worth is what determines your class not salaray. Mark Zuckerberg famously made 0 salary for a long time, Is Mark Zuckerberg not upper class?
@@sorka95032 Well said..... same for me. You only need to impress yourself.
There are a lot of ways to judge wealth. When you get older, there's one parameter that trumps everything. And that is your health. Good health should be your goal.
50k Net worth at 25 years old. Started with $100/mo when i was 18 years old making 30k/year. Now making 60k/year shooting to save $500+ per month.
Continue,smart kid ,but stay with it when bumps arise as they will
Never been called middle class and broke at the same time. Thanks brother 😂
The definition of wealth should be the amount of time that you can maintain your lifestyle without working
Yeah, how much of your time do you spend with people you enjoy being around? Vs 😱
No, thats lavish.
$50k net worth and 25 years old. Basically 100% of that is in retirement accounts. No debt, no assets. I know it’ll start to really pick up later in life, but damn it takes a while to get that ball rolling.
I’m in my mid 40s. Single, no children. I was fortunate to enter the work force with an engineering degree and no debt, thanks to my parents. I own a modest house (with a mortgage) and a modest car I paid cash for when it was new after the previous one began to fall a part. I don’t live in high cost areas either like NY or coastal CA. My net worth is around $1M which is mostly in retirement accounts. I don’t feel rich or like a millionaire but do feel fortunate and thankful. I also feel if this channel (and others like it) were around 20 years ago, I would be a lot, lot wealthier. No regrets though.
Why what would you have done differently?
@@username16129 i wish I did a net worth statement starting out. It would have changed the lens by which I viewed financial decisions. I also did some reading of finance books, just not enough and not soon enough.
😐😒
I agree, I would have put money in an index fund much earlier than leaving it in a savings account. I feel like a fool adding more years to my working life.
Who are you amassing all that money for ? Such wealth without having children is pretty pointless in my opinion.
According to this video my wife and I are “upper” class based on net worth. Neither of us received any significant inheritance. I grew up very poor, raised on welfare and food stamps. But we both worked hard through college and were able to get rewarding careers. We live modestly, with zero debt, and are maximizing our 401k investments every year. Our goal of a comfortable retirement is looking very possible!
I am in the same boat. I grew up poor and dropped out of college. We worked hard and saved. Now we are comfortable and our net worth is over $3 milllion. We still have another 17 years to work and save for retirement. We live below our means and are always looking for new ways to save. Many of my friends retired early and live off of rental income or investments. Unfortunately we are not that lucky.
Brilliant. So wise.
Same. We both grew up poor. I ate the real government cheese (grilled cheese) after my great grandmother scraped off the mold. It came in a rectangle unsliced. We both worked multiple jobs. At one time I was working at a marina, fast food restaurant, bookstore and had a side hustle washing boats. Your money can go far if you manage it. You can buy a dozen eggs then boil them then have an egg and fruit for lunch when you're young and you can also learn about Ramen noodles and
discounted bread stores etc. You can squeeze those dollars with coupons, roommates and eating with relatives or friends. We both worked and paid for our own college. It took me significantly longer to get my degree, but I did it without a student loan.
My wife is now a teacher and I'm a programmer. We have two boys that eat like horses, but we manage to save and spend wisely and do without sometimes to save so we have a high net worth on a middle/lower middle class salary. Like most Americans we were minimum wage workers but didn't stay their long. Anyone can achieve the American dream. They just have to make goals, not buy a new car every three years and prioritize their needs over their wants.
Same here... Congrats to you! 😊
Another one here in 'upper class'. Grew up poor, community college dropout. Started a career at 30 years old and just kept increasing income, keeping lifestyle in check and dumping money into 401k and other investments.
My goal has been 3million for a long time- cautiously optimistic I’ll reach it, but that’s still 20 years away and a lot can happen by then. For now, I’m on track, I currently have 6x my wages saved and I’m a young gen-Xer.
One thing that helped was being auto enrolled into a 401k in my 20s. I didn’t even know I had that money until I quit.
Also I have a good registered fiduciary who’s been investing majority of my capital and the returns are decent. Ever heard of ferrochrome securities?
Now I just need to get my wife on board!
Make sure you make that 401k a Roth if your employer offers it. Yes it can be done. But you won’t want to take extra money from your savings to pay taxes on your withdrawals when you are retired. Get them paid up front and never pay taxes on the earnings.
Always the scammers pop up, with 200 likes and ZERO comments.
Stop spamming.
@@bricktop7803
REPORT THEM...!!
@@spankynater4242
REPORT THEM...!!
So at 69, after working 50 years, with a bachelor's degree, I'm poor. Thank God for social security and my wife who is a RN. Whew
A really big problem is that this does not brake people down into age groups. As you age in most cases you will climb categories. So the lowest will be mostly young people and the high end will be mostly old people. This does not help people know how they are doing with their age category peers.
He did mention that for a minute and explained it fairly well
@@moisesalfaro3265 To be fair its still such a big factor that it deserves more than a minute at the end.
Some days I feel like I need to be doing better, but videos like this help to remind me of how fortunate I am. I am 23 and just celebrated my 1 year work anniversary and after tallying up the OT I put in, I earned $94k as a civil engineer. My net worth is just above 0 as I work on out pacing my student loans, but with an about 60% savings rate I'm hoping to make it to the top. Thanks Humphrey!
What a salary at such a young age. Is this after or before taxes?
@@_Wai_Wai_most likely before taxes.
That's great for an entry level engineer.
@@_Wai_Wai_ it’s before taxes.
Savage, congrats!
Hi there, started school at age 5 wearing a borrowed pair of shoes. Most of my clothes came from thrift shops for many years. Finished college. Became an officer in the Armed Forces where I did well, but not exceptional. Years away from home. Wounded, so I literally shed blood for what I've got. Retired as a senior officer. Now UMC. America is a great country.
My net worth is over a million and I do not feel rich . I feel comfortable. I still shop bargains ,no debt,no mortgage, but I do buy nice vehicles and pay cash .
Went from lower middle class to upper class over a span of 25 years. All due to focus, discipline and, yes, pure luck being born in the U.S. Thanks for the reminder that upward mobility is possible in our great country.
noice.
It (upward mobility) won't be for much longer if our government keeps up the insane spending levels of the past 15 years.
Oof, that was a wake up call. I'm Upper Middle class by income, but Lower class by net worth (I have a negative net worth right now). I 100% agree with your point that many "lower class" people get stuck in a cycle of debt, which seems to characterize our family since I was little. Working my way up though. My net worth has climbed over the last couple years, so once I pay off a good chunk of debt I can make it to solid middle class after the debt is paid down. Age 27 for context.
nice, you got this. and you're young! Keep goign!
Very similar here, near the top of upper middle class income, but at the bottom of that group by networth.
Sold my home just before 2020 kicked off. Haven't been able to buy anything usable since. 38.
Keep plugging brother.
Dang, upper middle class income at 27. You’re doing really well.
Cool im the opposite of you, my income sucks but i made a great investment making my networth better
*Humphrey Yang is beyond amazing.* “How to create income flow” do this
Making money is action, keeping money is behavior and Growing money is knowIedge.
I am fortunate I made productive decisions that changed my life forever (accumuIated over a MiI) through my finance-mentor. I'm a single parent, bought my house in January and hoping to retire at 53 by next year.
sear ch the name, lf you care.
*Rebecca Martin Watson*
l’m amazed to partake on this, lt has rekindled the fire to my goals
This actually makes me feel pretty good about myself. I was 16 when my son was born, so it was hard for me to juggle work, school, and fatherhood. I had to very slowly work my way through college. At 29 years old, I bought a house. At 30 years old I graduated college. Now I'm 31 years old. The only debt I have is my house. And my net worth is right around $70,000. At my current rate, I should be hitting the $100k mark before I turn 33.
in us?
@@ionutruxanda7477 Yes
Congrats dude! You're chugging along and showing your kid(s?) What it means to be an adult.
@@ionutruxanda7477 Yes, in the US.
32 years old, 250k net worth. Started my saving/investing journey late only about 3 years ago wish I started in my early 20s, still a long way to go but never too late to start!
amazing Yifei!
@@humphreyone to consider but maybe you should make a video for the late bloomers because as I’m sure you’re aware there a majority of millennials still don’t know any of this and now have to play catch up. These types of videos are a gem for those around their mid twenty’s and younger as they’ve got a lot of time, potential and prospects but for those in their early thirties and beyond this can be a discouraging reality check. Just some food for thought
You saved $250,000 in 3 years? How?
@Lala-ft1mb : I did it by working lots of OT, making good money, and not blowing anything .
Hard work and dedication to yourself.
My mom was making 30k or less her whole life and we grew up on food stamps. I'm starting my first industry job at 70k and I've been raised to always try to save money where I can by making my own food, renting cheaper, etc. Never thought I'd be able to buy a house for myself and my mom for a permanent home but its possible now even though the market is still expensive.
all the best!
You're a good kid. My sons have the same drive. Being raised in poverty was hard, but I still taught them how to budget and always pay their bills.
😊
The key is to never lose hope and keep aiming higher!
I'm a retired welder age 62..I bought a few houses paid them off. I was fortunate enough to inherit the house I grew up in and just recently sold it. No debt. Everything together puts me over 2mm. I try not to be too spendy and live a low key life.
A famous line, pay yourself first.
Humphrey, that was refreshing. I tend to get lost in the pursuit of financial success, the obsession to earn more and be financially "free". To know that earning +$50/day puts you in the top 20% across the globe - it makes you realise how good we have it and to take a pause occasionally and practise gratitude. I want to create a balance where hunger and drive don't diminish - but also be reflective and grateful enough, that my financial pursuits aren't crippling. Appreciate the breakdown, all the best!
you are welcome!
50 dollars a day is less than 20 k a year?
How good we have it? In the US if you make $50 a day you will most likely starve or freeze to death. Now if you are able to live in a poor country where $50 a day is rich and still pull US income of $50 a day you would be able to live like a king due to very low cost of living.
@@ericharold4074 - It's true that geographic location partly defines how well off a person is at a given level of absolute income. For example in many poorer parts of the world, US dollars are in high demand. If you have actual US dollars and a way to trade them on the black market, you can probably get a lot more with your dollars than you can in a high-cost-of-living location like San Francisco or New York City. However, while an actual dollar may go farther in a poor country, finding ways to earn an actual dollar may be much harder. In locations where costs of living are high, job opportunities may be abundant and salaries are often high to match, at least for those with marketable skills. That's why people with high levels of education tend to migrate to big cities with high costs, where they find many more ways to monetize their skills than they might find in say the rural parts of Afghanistan. And when people migrate out of states like California, they tend to create the same kinds of high-cost enclaves wherever they go.
But another point that I think supports your premise is social expectation. If you live in the USA, you're expected to have a certain level of material possessions. You have to keep up with people around you. In contrast, if you are in a poor country, there's no shame in being poor. You're surrounded by other people who make do with what they have, and you can learn those life skills from them. Whereas in the USA most people have long forgotten how to do much of anything for themselves, and everything costs money. We don't have good options for being poor in the USA, whereas in a poor country being poor is the main option.
But we have people making that and more sleeping in tents , cars and under bridges, dying from exposure, no healthcare and going to food banks n shelters. But I guess it could be worse. But what's worse than freezing 🥶 the death in a cardboard box.
I love how he shows the global scale to REALLY put things in perspective for us. If you’re making $50 or more per day then you’re upper class from a global perspective.
thank you! yep.
Which is also a pretty useless thing to know considering this doesn't account for cost of living.
Yh worthless statistic, since it doesnt factor in differences in cost of living
Literally don’t care about that perspective as I want to retire. I don’t want to be working myself to death and broke in the US at 70 just bc I can work at Walmart make $50 a day and be considered globally upper class. Joke of a metric.
@@MentalChoresPeople in undeveloped countries have drastically lower access to contraceptives and reproductive care, hence the higher birthrates.
To say that I'm both surprised and happy that I'm considered upper-class is an understatement. I came a long way to be here. Lots of hurts but I'm here and I'm fighting to retire comfortably so I don't become a burden to my daughter.
From a daughter's point of view. The greatest gift my parents gave me was to move to a continuing care retirement community (CCRC). They preplanned their funerals and converted all their assets into stocks, bonds and cash prior to moving to the CCRC. Thankfully, they both lived long, healthy lives until they passed after brief illnesses. Their planning for their inevitable decline and deaths made dealing with their estate relatively easy. It was a great gift to me.
it's kind of scary because even with a million plus in retirement, you still need a tight budget to have it last, especially if inflation outpaces interest/dividend earnings.
Behavior determines outcome. Delayed gratification usually wins out.
Based off of net worth, your income does not need to meet those numbers. Real estate appreciation and investing hits net worth even with modest income. Great content!
I advise you to research the year 2008, real estate does not ( and realistically can't) go up year over year, same with the stock market.............
@@MB-rr1fb oh my. One year it went down? Oh man, I better just put it all in to the bank and have zero risk.
Over time, but and hold real estate is what creates wealth.
Anyone can take one bad year of any investment and say it’s not good.
This is a very small outlook on investing and bodes a poor mindset to have
@@CombatMedic369 I agree! Same goes for investing in the stock market long term!!
yes, i've recently been bumped up a bracket due to my homes appreciation. Those of us that bought 4+ years ago and have the 3% or less loans are doing pretty well right now. My stock investments are going gangbusters right now, but I took a HELOC and am looking to use that to leverage into a rental property.
Appreciate the comment about income. Income has nothing to do with Net Worth.
This is going to be Humphrey’s most popular video.
haha i hope so!
@@humphreywell, I’m adding a like and a view. Maybe I’ll share it too!
his most popular, he will never have another video reach this popularity again
It was a great video. I gave it a like and I don’t do that very often on here lol
I forget how much debt folks carry. Retired (59) but my net worth puts me and my wife way above the standard of upper class. In no way would I ever put myself in that class. I wouldn't even include my house (Over 500K) because I wouldn't sell it just to have to live somewhere else. Senior Golfer.
I am fortunate I made productive decisions about my finances that changed my life forever. I'm a single parent living in Bn Italy, bought my second house in April and hoping to retire next year at 50 if things keep going smoothly for me.
You're really doing well for yourself, I'm 46 and my life is in a mess. Any tips would really go a long way in shaping my life.
Never neglect your finances, for lncome will remain stable while expenditures rise. The rich always acquire fortune cause they seek the aid of finance-pro(s) to make their goals a reality
I obtained massive growth in my finance by varying into exclusive packages with the aid of my finance-pro. hereby making my financiaI goals a reality .
sear ch the fuII name below, lf you care.
Rebecca Martin Watson.
This video was so powerful! I’ve been following your channel for a while (always a lot of great info/content) but this is hands down my favorite video. Great job!
Building wealth involves developing good habits like regularly putting money away in intervals for solid investments. Financial management is a crucial topic that most tend to shy away from, and ends up haunting them in the near future. Putting our time and effort in activities and investments that will yield a profitable return in the future is what we should be aiming for. Success depends on the actions or steps you take to achieve it. "You're not going to remember those expensive shoes you bought ten years ago, but you will remember every single morning when you look at your bank account that extra 0 in there. I promise, that's going to be way more fun to look at everyday", I pray that anyone who reads this will be successful in life too. 🙏🙏🙏
Starting early is the best way of getting ahead to build wealth, investing remains a priority. I learnt from my last year's experience, i am able to build a suitable life because I invested early ahead this time
I urge everyone to start somewhere now no matter how small, this is literally the time for that, forget material things, don't get tempted,i became more better the moment i realized this.
exactly! That's my major concern and what kind of profitable business or investment can someone do with the current rise in economic downturn
Hello nice comments here, please what exactly kind of investment are you talking about here, I'm really interested too
I believe there several businesses one can do easily and succeed, like for me I do forex trading
37 years old, 1.1M net worth, just got huge raises last few years and will make over $400k this year as a pilot. Grew up in poverty but studied hard on finances and ive saved over half my income for the last 7 years.
Killin it bro!! Happy for You 😁👍👍
I was born with nothing and I still have most of it left.
This is a great perspective check. I’m surprised someone with a home paid off and mostly debt free would fall so high (upper middle or upper class). I guess people don’t tend to think they’re rich but many regular families are if they’ve simply prioritized good saving and paying debt even if their income is middle class they could be upper class.
exactly
It's because people don't actually pay off their homes. If you look at the over 65 crowd something like 2/3 still have a mortgage.
You read my mind Michael! My pay is not middle upper class per say, but my networth is middle upper.
They always say.. it's not what you make.. it's what you save!
Also depends where you live, my numbers rank high, but I live in San Jose, CA. Expensive.
No sociologists define the classes by income quintiles like this video does. The top 1% of incomes is a better rough approximation of the upper class, and the top 10-15% is a decent measure for the upper middle class. Upper middle class is someone with at least a $2 million net worth by retirement. Age is important here, because a 40 year old with at least a $500k net worth is also likely in the upper middle class. For a 30 year old, net worth is hardly a measure of class at all since a 30 year old doctor with a negative net worth (student debt) and a $300k salary is clearly living an upper middle class lifestyle while being in the early stages of growing their net worth. The upper class is more like someone who has saved $10+ million by retirement (in 2023 dollars)
I am 80 yrs old and have a 7 figure net worth, with no debts and a home value of about $140,000. I invested in stocks and mutual funds over my working career. I still buy stocks in retirement.
If you work for a living, you are working class. Period. Class solidarity
As I get older it seems to me that cash flow trumps net worth. I am always on the hunt for income, my net worth fluctuates greatly. Rental real estate, option selling and self-employment are my pursuits.
Just turned 41. Been investing for 15 years. Started a business 12 years ago, and starting buying rental properties 3 years ago. Should hit $2m next year.
31 here.. Australian couple.. house nearly paid off.. networth about 1 million with retirement accounts..
Household income 170000$
Truck driver and stay at home mom on income insurance (cancer)
Being frugal in your 20s can bring you far…
This is all in Australian $$
Been an engineer since I graduated from A&M 7 years ago (29 years old now). Firmly in the upper middle class, I own a modest home in rural Texas (almost paid off), and drive a 2006 Honda Civic. Living below your means and investing in assets is so important for building wealth.
Hope that's an Si!
nobody cares
Wait another 5 years before getting married and cut back on drinking.
@rickybosephus2036 you cared enough to comment ...
@@DizzKidz bragging about not having children requires criticism. saving money when the world needs children is shamful not good
I am considered upper middle class due to net worth, but not due to annual income. Real estate income/assets are what got me there. I bought my first property at 23, and recently sold it for over 100k profit (I am in my early 30's). Having good credit in your early 20's really helps to set you up for life. I would recommend student or younger people get a student credit and maintain your credit over the course of 4-5 years your limits will increase (don't use it), keep your expenses low and you'll be in a good position.
One overlooked element for growing net worth is to remain employed with a stable income for an extended period of time. Job loss and lack of relevant skills will undercut any financial goals for anyone.
Good on you. I like hearing about young people with an understanding of finances and who have their priorities set correctly.
According to this, I am well into the upper class but I certainly don't act like it. I walk everywhere, take public transportation, eat 50 cent tacos in Mexico, and pretty much live the same way I did in my early twenties now that I'm in my mid-to-late thirties.
I own a lot of income-producing real estate so it's income covers my living expenses several times over.
I tend to do the barbell approach, either act really poor 80% of the time or the other 20% of the time to do lavish things. I'm not a fan of middle ground.
Yes, one thing that tends to happen with a lot of people as you build wealth, the more wealth you accumulate, the more frugal you become with certain habits because you're so much more financially conscious. You tend to prioritize and splurge on things that are much more important to you, but you also see the value of money.... that extra 200k on my fav car would have made a great downpayment on an investment property or could have gotten me 10% return on a conservative portfolio!
41 years old and I'm considered upper middle class. Just passed $1.5 mil net worth and I still feel lower middle class. I've been investing for 20 years now as I started in college. Really trying to set myself up for retiring early. Thank you for sharing Mr. Yang.
1.5 million worth of real estate can rent for 8k net profit per month with no mortgage and in cash no taxes. How do you blow 8k a month and feel lower middle class?
@@lineage13 It's my net worth, not my portfolio. A majority of the money is in tax deferred accounts meaning I don't have access to it until I hit 59.5. I'll continue to be frugal and enjoy life until I have a big enough taxable account to retire early.
I think the OP's number is household income, unless you are single.
@@dipperq I'm sorry. What are you referring to? The video is about net worth.
@@marinekappa82 i meant household net worth.
You're the first financial youtube content creator I've seen do a global comparison. Very eye opening. Thanks for the content!
A couple of years ago, I used to be over $100K in debt; now I'm debt free with $110K in savings, $120K in income. Debt-free feels amazing. Super glad to make it to middle class at 32.
On the path to upper class!
Those are some serious strides. Gj
Good for you! Yes it does feel good to be debt free. I grew up poor. After meeting hubby who is a frugal saver it is nice to retire and not worry about debt. WTG!!!
With the high home prices in California, I think this skews the numbers of net worth. I live in CA where my primary house is currently valued at 1.1M. I bought it 40 years ago for 95K. But instead of net worth, I measure my real net worth by cash flow that I can use for everyday living. For instance dividend paying stocks. My house does not produce any cash, but it does save me by not making any mortgages.
By the common networth definition, everyone that's a home owner in Silicon valley/San fran or SoCal is a millionaire.... which a million doesn't even mean that much nowadays, but even those with 2m homes paid off, they may not have the cashflow to live a luxurious life unless they sell their primary residence. It's complicated!
@@charlescg3904 right on point. Every homeowner in most areas are millionaires. That’s why I use cash flow from my assets to really measure my wealth.
@@charlescg3904 If you have assets and a place to live, you are rich. Cashflow is another issue.
I track my home price in my NW statement at its purchase price instead of current market only because of the inflated prices in real estate
Very good video, where you touch upon so many of the salient points that go into determining net worth. A video that correlates net worth by age would demonstrate how time gradually elevates those who are reasonably smart with their money into the Middle, Upper Middle, and Upper class categories. At age 35, my wife and I were lower middle by net worth and middle class by income. 20 years later and we're in the top category by both classifications. Something worth noting is a lot of people who are truly "Middle Class" at heart may have amassed enough wealth, or net worth, to be lumped into the "Upper" class, but they do not feel that way and do not act that way. That's how they got there, by being humble and grateful. That's also how you stay there.
Bit late but as a 34 year old who was born in abject poverty(we're talking picking bugs out of our food cause we couldn't afford new food kind of poverty) I'm pretty proud to say I'm at that lower middle class position. I just need to go back to school finish my degree and get my way to that middle class position next.
I never considered myself upper class, but apparently my net worth makes it so. I would say that your attitude and how you carry yourself is a truer depiction of your class.
I would fit myself in the middle class but if I were rich I still live and dress like the middle class. My dad raised me not to brag your wealth. This is a great break down.
Subtle wealth is the way!!!
Exactly, bragging about wealth is a fast way to get robbed.
Wow! This places things into perspective and makes me more appreciative of where I'm at in life. I'm an accountant in between upper middle class and upper top 20%. Growing up in poverty sometimes makes a person feel like they constantly have to make more and acquire more. Gotta just learn to enjoy life.
dont forget one bad day and you could lose it all lmao
I struggle with this. Grew up with a single mom raising 5 kids. Some birthdays had no presents. I'm now 38 and according to this I'm upper class. Sure don't feel like it. I've been working 60hr weeks and investing for 20 years and can't get enough. I'm shopping for a new car and am looking at 3 year old Honda pilots when I can easily afford Mercedes. Maybe I should spoil the wife with that trip to Florida and a new suv 😂
@@mattvan5100 I'll make it easy for you and vote for your wife to get a new SUV and trip lol. Sounds like you've been on the right track. Ok to splurge every now and again. You don't want to get old and can't enjoy the fruits of your labor. Enjoy some along the way, if you can.
@@mattvan5100 money is a tool. dont forget to reassess how much you need, how much you have, then maybe you can start to loosen the ourse strings if youre set
As an investing enthusiast, I often wonder how top level investors are able to become millionaires off investing. . I’ve been sitting on over $745K equity from a home sale and I’m not sure where to go from here, is it a good time to buy into stocks or do I wait for another opportunity?
First of all, You could lose it all and you could win it all. It goes both ways. Secondly, what works for A may not necessarily work for B and you should not be a bandwagon investor. A good number of folks are raking in huge 6 figure gains in this downtrend, but such strategies are mostly successfully executed by folks with in depth market
@@Curbalnk Facts!! Since the market became extremely volatile and pressure increased (I should be retiring in 17 months), I took the decision to work closely with a financial advisor. It has already been 9 months and counting, and I have made approximately 600K net from all of my holdings.
@@Shultz4334 That's impressive, my portfolio have been tanking all year, tried learning new strategies to gain in the current market but all of that flew right over head, please would you mind recommending the advisor you're using.
There are a lot of independent advisors you might look into. But i work with *HEATHER ANN CHRISTENSEN* and I have been working together for nearly four years, and she is excellent. You could proceed with her if she satisfies your discretion. I endorse her.
@@Shultz4334 I just checked her out and I have sent her an email. I hope she gets back to me soon.
I typically don’t comment but thank you for explaining and breaking down net worth as well as making a channel that’s easy to follow that doesn’t just assume your viewers understand everything
No one is talking about the advantages of a career in the military. I joined the Marine Corps when I was 19. I'm an old man now. Spent nearly 40 years in the service active duty and reserves. During my military retirement years I worked in civilian jobs too. I saved money even when I couldn't. Bought and sold houses. Got sick, but military paid for hospital bills. Bought and paid for inexpensive cars. Stayed married. Developed hobbies. Out of debt and happy. The military gave my life some spice.
At age 26, I am currently in upper middle class for income and networth, and moving towards the upper class income soon. I was lucky to get hooked on finances videos during college and started my Roth IRA at 18 and started maxing my 401k as soon as I got my first job. Looks like my major in Public Policy worked just fine
hopefully you can continue to max your retirement accounts every year. You will likely be able to retire by 50 if not sooner. I already have nearly $440K in my 401K after only maxing it for only 10 years. I hope to work another 10 or so years and then retire early.
I wish we would have Roth IRA oder 401k here in germany too bit there is not. I do not feel a retirement support here so everything will be taxed which make it a little bit hard. I hope an alternative will come here soon. Nice to hear that it is running for you 👌🏻👍🏻
That is awesome! I wish I was that aware at 18. I didn’t start a ROTH until I paid off my house a few months ago lol. I find that many late teens to young adults don’t understand the importance of tax leveraged accounts and investing in general; this was my case.
Unfortunately, I feel like many young individuals feel hopeless in todays environment with raising mortgage rates, inflation, and the lack of knowledge of where to start. I believe that if at 18 small little steps of just setting aside money in a Roth IRA could be the difference of financial freedom in the future.
Don’t forget you capitalized on the pandemic stock market crash - am I right! DOGE to the moon!
Very informative video, and full of great info. Thanks for putting out this content, regardless of whether people use it as a sounding board to grow their personal worth.
Amazing video, A friend of mine referred me to a financial adviser sometime ago and we got to talking about investment and money. I started investing with $150k and in the first 2 months, my portfolio was reading $274,800. Crazy right!, I decided to reinvest my profit and get more interesting. For over a year we have been working together making consistent profit just bought my second home 2 weeks ago and care for my family.
Hi. I’ve been forced to find additional sources of income as I got retrenched. I barely have time to continue trading and watch my investments since I had my second child. Do you think I should take a break for a while from the market and focus on other things or return whenever I have free time or is it a continuous process? Thanks
@@Lourd-Bab However, if you do not have access to a professional like JUDITH ANN PEACE, quitting your job to focus on trading may not be the best approach. It is important to consider all options and seek guidance from reliable sources before making any major decisions. Consulting with an AI or using automated trading systems can also be helpful in managing investments while balancing other commitments
@@TerriVess Oh please I’d love that. Thanks!
@@Lourd-Bab Judith Ann peace is her name
Lookup with her name on the webpage.
I enjoy his calm presentation. Not overhyping things but is factual
One big problem with using net worth alone as a measure of wealth is that a young doctor or lawyer that's making a ton of money but hasn't yet paid off their student debt counts as "lower class". On the flip side, someone nearing retirement who's narrowly in the top quintile isn't gonna be able to afford a particularly luxurious lifestyle.
What’s crazy to me is how fast wealth can be built in just 3-5 years with good saving/spending habits and above average salaries. We are a DINK family and have been working full-time since 2019. Starting out we were earning a combined $125k and this year we will be just over $200k. We spend $40-55k per year and also donate around 10% after-tax. Current NW at ages 26 and 28 is $500k
Agreed! 29 and 32 with net worth of 700k and houseold income that recently jumped from 100k to 700k
@@vmptaz1685Jesus wtf do you guys work to pull that much. Also what was the HUGE jump in income
Yeah, I dont believe it. This sounds like a phoney Dave Ramsey call.
Dear Penthouse…
im so grateful my parents didnt let me buy a car when i was working from 17-21 and i was able to get an apartment to rent out. I dont have much in tsfa or rrsp but my net worth has more than quadrupled in the 6 years ive owned the apartment
I'm a retired mailman. My income when I left was only 78,000 per year but my investments and retirement account put me in the upper class.
Lower class by net worth, but lower middle by income :( . Working on that
Thanks for the reality check. I’m early 30s and sitting very comfortably in upper class by your numbers but I definitely spend like lower class lol
Great job!
Your videos are always helpful, honest and practical! ❤❤❤❤thx
I'm an Architect and my wife is a lawyer. You pretty much stuck us exactly where your projections show (both 35 yr old). Thanks for the insight.
Mid 30s and about to hit the upper middle class net worth by the end of the year. Half of it is in my investment/retirement accounts and the most of the other half is in the equity I get from my home. The thing is that a lot of people should realize is that that my immediate purchasing power is pretty much my savings, credit cards, and income since investment/retirement accounts and equity from my home are unrealized gains (can tap into the cash till I sell). This means in the immediate, I'm cash poor which is fine by me as I want the majority of my money working for me through my investments.
Very interesting to see how these categories are defined, and also a little depressing as someone in their mid-20s with a good amount of student debt still. I work in a "specialized profession" that carries with it the social capital of an upper class occupation, but starting salary for the first 5-10 years is sub-100K and with my student loans I technically fall in the lower class bracket by net worth...
I'm gonna guess vet or massage therapist
I always considered myself middle class, but my house alone places me in upper class. It really depends where you live, an average home where I live cost between 1.5M and 2M.
23 years old! Income and net worth wise, middle class but goals and mindset of the lower middle class. I think it’s because I’ve only recently started working full-time and entering this bracket and maybe it’ll feel more secure or normal in a few years? Great video, really insightful!
I scratched and clawed my way into the top 20% and I'm paving the way for my kids to do the same.
Upper class, but I remember when my net worth was $0.
tell us how you did it!
Yeah man. Feel you there. Still remember wife and I graduating with 100k in student loans and buying a house 3 months later...crazy time. 10 years of making some decent decisions and good income bumps really can change things.
@@humphrey School. Job. Save. Quit. Start company. Sell. Start 2 more companies. Sell one. Pivot the other and still working and saving. Time is on your side.
This really puts things into perspective. The calculator said I’m 0.1% in South Asia, I was honestly shocked. I never thought of myself as particularly wealthy.
It’s almost eerie how the trends of those that fall in to certain classes is accurate. Age 35.
Upper Middle Class.
Net worth 200k. Yes (not counting retirement accounts)
Income : 130k Yes.
Education: Engineer Yes.
Foreign Travel: Yes
Home Owner: Yes
Literally correct across the board.
Only difference is I don’t feel that class.
Starter home, Nothing designer, Cost conscious, Car Value 12k. Rarely eat out.
It’s weird to be in a bucket but feel 2 buckets back.
The ratios of net worth to income are surprisingly low for the middle class groups. I would have guessed middle class homeowners would have a lot more home equity built up as well as a lot more in retirement accounts than the median net worths suggest. There has been substantial growth in real estate and stock values over the years so I would have assumed that would be more reflected in the net worths of these groups than it is.
My wife and I are both 1st generation born in the US. We worked hard, came out of school about a decade ago and went from being at the bottom of the lowest quintile with a very negative net worth to the upper half of the top quintile in that time frame. This was done through hard work, living frugally, having goals, delaying pleasure, and, exactly as you said, investing in a home, retirement accounts, and brokerage accounts.
I love this different type of content. Keep killing it brotha.
Early 40s, household technically meets the definition of upper class, but it certainly doesn’t feel like it! Hazard of a more modest home in a more expensive development and hearing about all the foreign travel others do. We have been big time savers and the net worth of about $600 is a result of about 2/3 home equity/house appreciation since we bought our home in 2018, with the remainder being in retirement accounts (IRA, 457, etc).
I remember starting off after grad school in 2012/2013 wondering how the heck we would ever do well, so feeling pretty fortunate nowz
Watching this channel, or a lot of financially oriented podcasts/youtube channels/etc, the common theme seems to be that everyone should be focused on amassing as much wealth as possible by the time they retire, or even later in life. I understand that setting yourself up for a comfortable and secure future is important, but is it really best to forgo most frivolous expenditures until you are beyond the age where you could have really enjoyed them? I guess what I'm trying to say, is that perhaps it's important to stop and smell the roses. Try and enjoy yourself within reason, throughout your life, after you have established a stable income and financial security.
I hear what you are saying and I don't think most of the responsible finance TH-camrs would disagree with you. I think most of them, including myself, think you should slow down and smell the roses but you should really plan for such frivolous spending. As for me, I have a budget for such things. The main concern is that most people do not save enough and if I er saving happens, it's better than undersaving.
Interesting stuff. According to the chart, I'm in the upper class. In my 40s, married with two children. Wife and I both came to this country in our late teens with no money, no inheritance. Household income of $120k+, combined net worth of $1.25M, own a couple of properties, the only debt is our home. We don't spend on a lot of things but I don't feel "upper class" at all, I'm stressed by the current inflation. I wanted to buy a $30k used "fun car" but feel it's a huge luxury so I guilt myself out of it. Is it weird to feel this way? The upper-class range must be huge.
I drive a 2018 Toyota Rav4 that we paid $28k- $35k (can’t remember)for new then. Prior to that we traded our Range Rover for it. Got tired of it in and out of the (good)mechanic shop. Once saved a bit ($600) by watching TH-cam video to change out the 2 headlight bulbs on it myself-it wasn’t hard to do. We’re in the upper bracket. My husband’s slated to make over $1 this year as a physician. He shocked and surprised me when I had to sign our joint tax return and he’d earned more than $200k extra last year. We’re Boomers though. He plans to keep working and we travel, give to churches and charities and have a non-profit helping the homeless in our city. We both grew up in financially challenged homes.
@@linziee.8651 Good on you. I think "live within one's means" is a great virtue, something that isn't really touted by the American consumer culture. Although, we should all remember to enjoy life while we still can.
my income matches the middle class but my net worth has now surpassed the median upper class net worth(im 43). cool way to present the numbers, thanks!
Thanks for passing this along! I was surprised to find out how well I have done investing. 48 years old with $400000 liquid net worth on a salary of $44.000 per year. This places me in the lower upper class.
I stand by what my parents taught me. "You can't buy class." 😎
Thanks for confirming how broke I am 😭
u can change the direction of it!
I am 61. I guess we are upper class. I never thought of myself as wealthy. The only reason is we bought a house in NYC in 1990 and it has appreciated so much. Weird.
This is so helpful. I would never expect our level. We are such frugal people. All our cash is already named for something. We go on vacation for almost free with our points and we always pay things in full.
Age 29, net worth of upper middle class, locked in real estate (appreciated by 120k last 2 years), and 200 k in stocks. Sometimes I feel like I’m behind but that’s what keeps me hungry. Love your videos!
Nice work!
What is your profession and salary?
You're doing very well by countrywide standards, but like someone mentioned here you may feel differently depending on where you live. In some of the larger cities, because of how much sheer wealth is flowing around you may feel very average or even below average but that's okay at this age, you have tons more years to get ahead, if you want stability and consistent wealth building, stick with a high paying job and in 5 years you're guaranteed a millionaire. If you want things to move faster, the only way is to get out of the rat race and work yourself. Unless you're very high level 6 + programmer or surgeon or ceo, entrepreneurship is probably the only way to fast track or 'cheat' your way in the rat race if that makes sense!
Poor is a state of mind!
What I am is broke lol
I'm 58 years old and have always lived a little above my means. While I don't have much savings, I do have a pension and plenty of equity invested in my home. My feeling has always been, "You can't take it with you". I have friends my age that are still living frugal and saving so they can live comfortably in the 60's and 70's and hopefully 80's. To me, I wanted to live well during my prime and I'm fine with cutting back as I enter old age.
Best explained video 🎉 thank you
I think I will always feel like I'm in the middle class no matter what I actually fall
Lower middle class at 23 but I haven’t even been working 1 year. I still would like to do better though
save/invest regularly and you got this
I have so much climbing to do. What makes me happy is, I see progress. My goal is to be in upper middle class.
I went from Below Poverty level to Upper middle class. Nice 👌
The key takeaway here is that it isn't income alone, it is a fuzzier metric of income, net worth, and spending goals.
You can live in California making $50k and be in poverty unable to pay for basic needs. But you could be retired in the Midwest making $50k but have $2M in the bank and your home and cars paid off and very much in the upper class.
The other thing I always get blown away with is average income. In my area the average mean household income is $45k, but if you made $45k as a married person with kids in my area you would be struggling hard. When looking at average metrics, you have to break it down by your ciry and age bracket. So while the local average where I live is $45k, the average for people in the "messy middle" of 30s-40s with a family the average income is closer to $75k... Which still seems low to me, but possible. But in my area we also have a lot of retired people making just under $30k a year with no debts, which is what brings that overall average waaaay down when not accounting for age ranges and demographics.
With money it is all relative. Personally, we are hoping to break $100k this year, which would put us in the upper 20% for my area of wage earners... But we haven't had an above average income for very long, so we have no assets to show for it and still live like we are quite poor. But as we play catchup on debts and investments, if we can continue keeping our income above average then we will be able to get into that upper class eventually... We just don't want to live like the upper class, loose our income, and then be worse off than had we never had a good income to begin with.
good points here Caeden. Its all relative for sure.
Very much a reality depending on what area you live. 2M networth puts you at lower middle class in a lot of wealthier areas in San Jose and SoCal and even up in Canada with the insane housing prices 2m is a dime in a dozen in the bucket in some of the wealthier neighborhoods, while you can live like a king/queen in other parts of the country.
I think I have a problem with 1 in 5 families in the US making a median of $237,000. I think that goes to show these kinds of numbers are all over the place and greatly dependent on ages and where they live.
After 2008, I changed course.
Sold out city living, bought 5 acres in the mountains, all very modest. I have a big garden, a food forest, medicinal plants, edibles. No debt, low income. I live modestly, I am not a Consumer Unit. So I save $300 per month, but will eventually need transportation. When I buy something, it tends to kill an expense, like when I added solar. My big garden worked for me during inflation, called my Free Food Diet, and I am healthy, few complaints and garden herbs and fine for that. I tightened my budget and still stick with it. I preserve my garden for all year.
I identify with the old janitor guy cutting his own wood, although I was a skilled white collar worker.