Since when is 1.2 million in assests considered middle class?

[Haole Girl]

Sara Palin claimed in the debate, last night, that she and her husband have been middle class all their lives.

Wow. Really?

I guess that is the new Bush World Order middle class.

To Sara Palin I say this: LIAR, LIAR, PANTS ON FIRE!

:grr:

[phantom power]

1. It's about what you need to retire with a decent income.

1.2 million in assets isn't all that much.

[Haole Girl]

3. It's a hell of a lot more than I have. nt

[phantom power]

5. That is what people mean when they say the middle class is shrinking.

Most people don't have it.

[guitar man]

7. so she's 44

and ready to retire if she wants. I'm 3 months older than her and I couldn't retire if I had to.

[Haole Girl]

10. She probably could retired with that..

if she was frugal, anyway.

[CTyankee]

35. That's the key. I retired with less than $1.2M in assets, but I live beneath my means.

I just found LOTS of things to cut out such as coloring/highlghting my hair, not buying a new car (driving an older but paid for car), having a husband whose union provides excellent health care benefits, and investments inherited from my mother. I tore my budget apart looking for things to cut or reduce. I use only credit cards that pay ME something I value and need and I never pay interest that isn't tax deductible.

I don't know any other way...

[Union Thug]

13. Ditto here.

[phantom power]

She's upper middle class. The thing to realize is...

that most Americans are no longer in the middle class. If you define "middle class" in the traditional sense of "being basically financially secure, with access to health care and expectations of a dignified retirement," most Americans no longer qualify.

Scratch the surface, and we are very near to being a third-world country.

[guitar man]

31. yep, I'm afraid you're right

that's what we get in exchange for years of Reaganomics. Massive Fail :grr:

[phantom power]

33. I think the GOP benefits from the effect...

that most people define themselves as "middle class." And people who are better off than them are "rich."

If at any point the majority of 300 million Americans ever look around and realize that they're actually poor, perhaps the torches and the pitchforks will come out.

[guitar man]

42. we made 44k last year

Then off the top of that, $4500 went to health coverage premiums. So I guess $39,500 a year for a family of 3 is poor, it sure feels that way :(

[kath]

20. Except that she's more than 20 years from retirement.

A couple in their mid-40s having a net worth of $1.2 million is doing awfully damned well.

[OKNancy]

2. Well, actually, that's not that much

a lot of middle class people would have that much in assets if they had a home,
two cars, some sort of retirement plan. I even have a few pieces of art and antiques that
would bring my assets up.. and my husband is blue collar.

[Haole Girl]

4. See above. nt

[speedoo]

6. Actually, $1.2 million in assets could be considered middle class.

An older couple living in an area where real estate is expensve could have maybe $600k home equity, plus $300k each in retirement assets. I think quite a few people with that level of assets would consider themselves middle class.

[Haole Girl]

9. I'm sorry, but I keep thinking about her property, and sea plane, and...

lined pockets...

I don't see her as middle class.

Not financially, anyway.

[speedoo]

25. I'm in no way defending her.

I assure you there are very few people who think less of her than I do. But it's probably true that many middle class couple have $1.2 mill. in assets, or more.

[PVnRT]

8. Fuck, man, I WISH I had that much sitting around

[Haole Girl]

14. Yeah. Me too. nt

[Union Thug]

11. Yeah, 1.2 million is light years away from the total combined worth

of me and my three siblings, and my father, combined.

The problem is that people who have those assets tend to see the world through their economic filters. They lose touch with the working class (who, through my filters flirt most often only with the bottom rungs of the middle class - and many, especially these days, rarely see the bottom rungs without two working people, often holding three or more jobs between them).

Sarah Palin's version of the middle class cannot be equated with the 'middle class' of my truck driver next door neighbor who routinely goes without health care (even when clearly significantly ill or injured), and who has no savings, and rents a house shared with roommates to help cover the cost of rent. There's just no comparison. The term 'middle class' get's bandied about with little critical consideration and its often unclear who the term applies to...

[Haole Girl]

15. Thank you. Well said.

Millions of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck.

THAT is the harsh reality of today.

:-(

[Erin Elizabeth]

12. It's not middle class around here, that's for sure.

[Haole Girl]

16. lol

:thumbsup:

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

17. Are her tax returns being made available today?

I've read posts on DU this week that Palin's returns were going to be released.

[Haole Girl]

22. I don't know. I heard about her 1.2 mil in assets on NPR yesterday. nt

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

29. I read that her earnings last year were $250,000

It was posted yesterday on DU and I believe it was from a story in the Wall Street Journal. If true, that's at the very upper level of the middle class. I also read that her home and the land it's on are worth about $500,000. I wonder how that compares to average home values in Wasilla.

[Haole Girl]

30. It's out there. A simple google search shows many links. Here is one...

http://www.time.com/time/politics/article/0,8599,1846372,00.html

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

38. That article discusses the Palins' business ventures

I recall last night that Palin mentioned at least a couple of times the fact that she was a "business owner". She mentioned a trio of qualifications: mayor, business owner, and energy regulator (interesting that "regulator" is suddenly added to her resume at a time when regulation is a hot topic). According to your article, her husband has a fishing business and previously ran a snowmobile business with a partner. It was during the time Sarah Palin was mayor of Wasilla and it doesn't appear that she ran it. The article also discusses a consulting business that she tried to start that never got off the ground. It also mentions a car wash business that was never actually built. I wonder what Palin was referring to when she implied that she was a businesswoman and had business managerial experience.

[Haole Girl]

41. Reminiscent of * and all his failed ventures, isn't it? nt

[GetTheRightVote]

18. They claim to be middle class so that way we do not realize that there is not one anymore

They stole even more of it today by passing that theif's bailout/rescue plan.
We are really in trouble now that China really owns us, lock, stack and bailout.

:grr::grr:

[Haole Girl]

23. Agreed. We're in trouble. That is a given...especially now. nt

[stray cat]

19. In NY - if you bought a house 20 years ago you could be worth that but unable to pay property taxes

[Haole Girl]

26. And unable to sell it, too!! nt

[JimWis]

21. Out of a group including myself, all my relatives, friends, and

all the people I work with, I only know of a handful of them who might have an excess of 1.2 million in net worth. And we consider them - well off. I believe most middle class do not have that kind of net worth, including house, cars, retirement, etc.

[Haole Girl]

27. Agreed. Thanks.

Then again, maybe I've become lower class. When we have to pay our income taxes, though, they don't call our income(s) poverty level!!

[azmouse]

24. My husband and I have close to that in assests...

We don't live an extravagant life. We haven't taken a vacation since '04. Our one luxury is owning a '02 Corvette ZO6 and being able to treat ourselves to nice alcoholic beverages. That's it.
We eat at home, I shop Target for sales and we don't wear designer clothes.

Middle class? Maybe. I'm not sure.
The company my husband works for may go under. Our 401K has lost a lot of value. Unless something changes very much in this country my husband is no where near being able to retire any time soon and who knows if those assests we've worked so hard to build up will be there for us in our old age.

[Haole Girl]

28. I wonder if the assets - any of us have - truly have the value we think.

I know we couldn't sell our home, right now, if our lives depended on it. :-(

[azmouse]

32. We have 2 houses in our neighborhood that have been for sale for 1.5 yrs

No one is buying. I'm thankful that we're in a situation where we can sit tight.... at least for now.

I understand that I'm in a better situation to weather the coming storm than most others but I'm still really worried about the future. My heart goes out to those who are losing jobs, homes and families....

My hope is that Obama will be able to turn things around but many will be suffering til things get better.
May God bless us all.

[elocs]

34. What is considered to be specifically middle class is subjective.

I think a good percentage of Americans self identify themselves as being middle class when they are actually working class. Working class people can be happy and are really the backbone of America, but they do lead lives of quiet desperation, often living from paycheck to paycheck and one health crisis or financial crisis, such as the loss of a job, could spell disaster for them. Most of their assets are probably in their homes and that amount would depend upon where they live and how long they have owned their home (the median price for a home where I live is $135,000).

I am not now, never have been and never will be middle class. That being said I believe it is entirely possible for a 2 income family with a home to have $1.2 million in assets and be considered to be middle class, although more toward the upper middle class end of the spectrum.

[Haole Girl]

39. True enough. Thanks for your reply. nt

[Blue_In_AK]

36. Many of us here were surprised to learn

that the Palins are this asset-rich, although in fairness it needs to be pointed out that home values here are inflated. Our very modest little duplex in an average part of town that I bought in 1990 for $117,000 is now valued at $311,000. Also it's not that unusual for people here to own planes and boats because that's the only way you can get to most of the state. I'm sure the Palins' commercial fishing permit has some significant value, as well.

When my mother passed away in 1999, we kids were surprised to learn -- shocked, really -- that she and my dad had accumulated over $1 million in their lifetimes, as well. You never would have known it from the way they lived.

I'm not making excuses for the Palins, just pointing out that here, at least, $1.2 million is not all that much in today's economy.

[Haole Girl]

37. Now I'm just depressed

I guess I can consider myself lower income.

[Blue_In_AK]

40. I know what you mean.

Almost every day I thank my lucky stars that I bought this place back at the end of the last real estate crash here, when ironically enough my landlady got foreclosed on and I had to move fast. Rental vacancy rates at the time were like 1% and I was forced to buy. The realtor I was working with steered me to this place (also a foreclosure, a HUD house) because I could qualify for a bigger loan with the income unit. It was the best thing that ever could have happened to me, although at the time I wasn't so sure.

Incidentally, I DON'T have an airplane or a boat, although my brother who lives in Homer just bought himself a little fishing boat. He lives in a modest little house down there, but up until last year, the cabin they were renting for several years didn't even have an indoor toilet except for a portable one.

Like I said, things are different here.

[democrat2thecore]

43. All things are relative, huh? (meaning I agree with you)---nt