Are you wealthy (2 mill.) or just comfortable (1 million)?

[viewing ownly]

On 1/26/2026 at 10:57 PM, Lotus-eater said:

That woman is living beyond her means. She makes only $2K a month and yet rents a 2 bedroom apartment. She could get a roommate and cut her housing expense in half. Even worse, she cries because she has to work 40 hours per week: "working makes me soooooooooo exhausted" that she can only rouse herself to do other housework/errands on weekends, which leaves her with no free time. Talk about the stereotypical snowflake Gen Zoomer.

You're not a snowflake just because you have high rent and are bothered by it. That's a landlord issue, not a problem she created. Nobody should feel forced to get a roommate. That's when you start to have REAL problems. Lower paying jobs are exhausting by design. It's called moving up the ladder to work less. 

[+ Vegas_Millennial]

4 hours ago, viewing ownly said:

That's a landlord issue, not a problem she created

Minimum wage, single income, 2 bedrooms?   I'm sorry... The 2nd bedroom is a choice she made and is prioritizing over her future.   A studio is fine for 1 person.   I laugh at sob stories that report the minimum wage is not enough to rent an average 2 bedroom apartment in most cities... why are all these one people on minimum wage needing 2 bedroom apartments!

[+ Vegas_Millennial]

On 12/6/2025 at 6:53 PM, BeamerBikes said:

I’m supposed to be comfortable I suppose but it’s mainly locked up in a 401k prison. Then in home equity as well….  I gotta get busy living.  I’d rather die while I’m living than live while I’m dying.  

Well said.  I'm comfortable/wealthy as well; but, like you, it's locked away in retirement accounts and home equity.

I've lived a life of saving and investing most of my earned income in my 20s.  Now in Middle Age, what I save and invest is peanuts compared to the growth from the smart decisions I made in my 20s.   To get busy living, I've stopped saving as much and increased my leisure spending; but, it's hard switching from a savings mindset to a spending mindset.

Edited January 31 by Vegas_Millennial

[Lotus-eater]

5 hours ago, viewing ownly said:

You're not a snowflake just because you have high rent and are bothered by it. That's a landlord issue, not a problem she created. Nobody should feel forced to get a roommate. That's when you start to have REAL problems. Lower paying jobs are exhausting by design. It's called moving up the ladder to work less. 

It's not the landlord's responsibility to provide her with a 2 bedroom apartment that she can afford. Too bad if the entitled snowflake needs to get a roommate or to move to a small studio. Lower paying jobs are not designed to be exhausting; plenty of high paying jobs are also exhausting. If she wants a higher standard of living, she needs to work toward a better paying job or move to a more affordable location, which people do all of the time.

Edited January 31 by Lotus-eater

[viewing ownly]

1 hour ago, Vegas_Millennial said:

Minimum wage, single income, 2 bedrooms?   I'm sorry... The 2nd bedroom is a choice she made and is prioritizing over her future.   A studio is fine for 1 person.   I laugh at sob stories that report the minimum wage is not enough to rent an average 2 bedroom apartment in most cities... why are all these one people on minimum wage needing 2 bedroom apartments!

Typically, to hoard. That's standard, and the answer. Took me two solid weeks with generous helpers to throw out mountains of shit when one of my single parents passed, always insisting on living alone with extra rooms to store things not needed or being looked at - until I had to. I may have chucked SOMETHING that may have had value (like basketball standout Kareem Abdul-Jabbar singing her yearbook before that became his name), but when too much is kept, it's sad. 

[Rudynate]

On 12/6/2025 at 4:07 PM, Vegas_Millennial said:

I read somewhere (Financial Samurai) that wealthy people should not have more than 40% of their net worth tied up in their house.  So, with $2 Million net worth, someone's house should not exceed $800K.  I've looked, and I can't buy a $800K one bedroom in Manhattan and feel wealthy.  I'm looking at moving to Ft Lauderdale in 2 years, and even $800K there doesn't buy anything that would scream "wealthy".

Is it more important to look wealthy or be wealthy?

[Luv2play]

The first 25 years of my life I was supported by my parents and got educated. The next 25 years I supported myself and built my wealth. The last 27 years I have been retired and led a comfortable life without having to work. 
Worked for me.

But I was lucky to live in a time when costs of living were reasonable and one could save. Houses were relatively affordable and other things like cars were relatively cheap. I always had 2 which was a bit of an indulgence. And travel was easy and relatively hassle free. 
 

I feel sorry for the younger generation. They don’t have it as easy. 

 

[arnie]

Actually I am worth total almost 3M, but I don't consider myself wealthy but we judge our wealth in some respect to our peers.  And that is considering that my social security meets all of my monthly nut and some additional expenditures.    I am very cognizant that I need to maintain my nest egg and need to live to do that. 

I do watch how I spend my money.   I come from a family that never had financial issues but was taught to be mindful about money.  I live at a middle of the road level.  I fly upgraded coach.  I stay at Hampton Inn level hotels.  I will eat at Outback but prefer a slightly better restaurant although I don't eat out often as I am definitely not a foodie.    Living in Las Vegas I do shun the places on the Strip.  I buy mid level cars, the last a Hyundai Tuscon, new,  but keep them for 5 plus years.  I rarely shop Macy's. more like Kohl's on sale or the outlet mall.

   I do live in an upscale community so by comparison to those who eat out constantly and take several expensive vacations a year, and also have vacation homes or have 500K bus size RV I don't feel wealthy.  But I am also aware of how very fortunate I am, rating in probably the top 10% of the country so I shed no tears and ask for no sympathy.  But I am can't buy 3000K pants from Neiman Marcus or spend 1000K for a night at the Four Seasons,  that is wealthy.

[56harrisond]

Here’s the Net Worth Considered To Be Upper-Middle Class at 54

 

Reaching the mid-50s is a financial milestone for most people. Careers are largely established, retirement is within sight and most major life expenses are already on the balance sheet. But not everyone knows what “class” they fit into or how their net worth compares with other people their age.

The most recent Federal Reserve Survey of Consumer Finances shows the median net worth for Americans aged 45 to 54 is $246,700. That figure reflects the financial position of a typical household in this age range, but upper-middle class — by definition — sits far above the median. Here’s the net worth needed to be considered upper-middle class at age 54.

According to the Money Guy Show, upper-middle class individuals fall in the 50th to 75th percentile of people and have net worths ranging from a minimum of $209,000 to a maximum of $714,000.

Those climbing into this group often move from focusing on basic financial stability to planning for long-term security, with an eye toward financial independence by optimizing investments.

It’s worth noting that there’s no definitive guideline for defining the classes and Melanie Musson, finance expert at Quote.com, sets a higher benchmark for upper-middle class.

“If you have a net worth of approximately $2 million at age 54, you can be considered upper-middle class,” she said.

This definitely represents people at the upper end of the spectrum, far above the median and even above the 50th to 75th percentile range. It reflects decades of disciplined saving, investing and asset growth.

A net worth of up to $2 million isn’t a target for everyone. It represents the high end of upper-middle class in the U.S., somewhere that only a relatively small proportion of Americans will fit into.

 

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/net-worth-considered-upper-middle-070006185.html

 

Edited yesterday at 03:26 PM by 56harrisond

[+ Charlie]

On 1/31/2026 at 11:26 AM, Vegas_Millennial said:

Minimum wage, single income, 2 bedrooms?   I'm sorry... The 2nd bedroom is a choice she made and is prioritizing over her future.   A studio is fine for 1 person.   I laugh at sob stories that report the minimum wage is not enough to rent an average 2 bedroom apartment in most cities... why are all these one people on minimum wage needing 2 bedroom apartments!

This post hit home for me, because I live alone in a good-sized house, (living room, dining room, kitchen, den, office space, two bedrooms, two bathrooms, and a two car garage). I moved into it with my now-deceased spouse nine years ago. Why do I need so much space? Well, most family and old friends live far away, and if they come to visit, I enjoy providing a place for them to stay for free. But the real reason is because over a long life I have collected an enormous amount of stuff, and it is hard for me to throw away things. I have 99 shelves of books, 3 file cabinets, two office desks, 4 clothes closets, lots of storage facilities in the garage (I can squeeze only one car into it), not to mention all sorts of cabinets for kitchen storage. My spouse was an architect by profession and an artist as a sideline, and the walls are covered with his paintings. Do I need all this stuff? Of course not, but how do I decide what to get rid of?  How do I know when I am going to need some of it? How do I get rid of things that have sentimental value only to me? 

My house cleaner often suggests that I sell things I don't actually need--like all those books. I live in a retirement community, and a neighbor is in charge of the library in our community lodge, so I suggested to him that he go through my book collection and take whatever he thought the library  could use.  He and his partner came over one afternoon, and left with five large boxes of books; it hardly made a noticeable dent in the collection on my shelves. Lately I have been spending an hour per day going through all the papers left by my spouse and throwing away anything that I don't think is necessary to keep (he had a harder time throwing things away than I did). But most of the things in my house that I would consider getting rid of are things that no one would buy or even have a use for. The only thing that is likely to get me to just throw things away would be if I am forced to move to a one bedroom or studio apartment like the one I lived in when I was a graduate student.

 

[sutherland]

1 hour ago, Charlie said:

The only thing that is likely to get me to just throw things away would be if I am forced to move to a one bedroom or studio apartment like the one I lived in when I was a graduate student.

 

Someone once said to me "a cluttered home is a cluttered mind" and I live in a very minimalist environment.  It works for me and when I have to move into an assisted living facility it won't be difficult to downsize