Posted on 12/9/2011, 1:05:02 AM by Sub-Driver
What's rich? $150K, a new poll says By: MJ Lee December 8, 2011 05:31 PM EST
How much does the average American need to make per year to feel rich? $150,000.
In a new Gallup poll Thursday, people were asked an open-ended question about how much annual income they would need to earn to consider themselves rich and $150,000 was the median answer.
Gallup noted, “The question of who is ‘rich’ in the United States has been frequently discussed during the past few years as the nation’s policymakers debate income-tax and deficit-reduction policies. Additionally, the Occupy Wall Street protests have focused their attention on the wealthiest 1% of Americans. The poll results suggest Americans would need quite a bit less than what the wealthiest 1% of Americans earn to consider themselves rich.”
Here’s the poll breakdown: About one out of four people, 23 percent, said earning between $100,000 and $150,000 per year would be enough for them to feel rich, while 12 percent said an income between $60,000 and $99,999 was plenty to consider themselves wealthy. Almost one out of five people, 18 percent, said making less than $60,000 would be enough to feel rich.
And for about half of the people surveyed, 47 percent, anything less than $150,000 just wasn’t enough to cut it.
According to the poll, 18 percent of the people surveyed said they needed to make something between $150,001 and $299,999 annually to feel like they were rich, while 14 percent said they considered an yearly income that feel between $300,000 and $999,999 to consider themselves wealthy.
(Excerpt) Read more at politico.com ...
What a stupid question, to confuse “rich” as a status with how much income one makes in a given year.
If you have half a million dollars in education debt and make 150K in your first year as a doctor, you are NOT rich.
If you have 5 million in the bank but lost 200 thousand in a given year due to investments failing, you are still rich.
We have zero economic education in this nation.
Right...a mortgage, 2 cars, 3 kids, two in college...Yeh right...rich!!!
Word. Exact same situation here. And not a penny of help for anything...hell the 2 in college cost me 40 grand right off the top.
Idiots.
My husband made a lot of money for a few years, but now he is facing a layoff. Just because someone made a lot of money for a year does not make that person rich.
Heck, even having a million dollars in the bank does not make you rich. Ymost people need more tan that to retire with a modest income.
Also, people in different parts of the country need different amounts of money. $150k in the SF bay area is not much!
Land of $1,000 per square foot housing will do that.
Some parts of the country, making $150K/year would barely cover renting a small apartment and living paycheck to paycheck. In other areas, you are the richest guy in town.
You know kids, I’ve never made close to $150 large. I’d consider that comfortably middle class.
But then I live in Garland. Couple of my neighbors prolly pull down close to that. And their houses are paid for, it is an old ‘hood. Their lawns look a lot better than mine but I don’t consider them “rich.”
I’m rich! I’m rich!
It sounds has though a lot of those polled have already slipped into Depression mode. When the Depression hits in the next couple of years, anyone with $150K is going to be considered “rich”.
| Income range | Households (thousands) |
Percent | Percentile | Mean number of earners | Mean household size |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $0 to $25,000 (28.22%) | 0.6 | 1.9 | |||
| Under $2,500 | 2,566 | 2.26% | 0 | 0.23 | 1.97 |
| $2,500 to $4,999 | 1,389 | 1.22% | 2.26% | 0.52 | 2.04 |
| $5,000 to $7,499 | 2,490 | 2.20% | 3.48% | 0.39 | 1.76 |
| $7,500 to $9,999 | 3,360 | 2.96% | 5.68% | 0.33 | 1.66 |
| $10,000 to $12,499 | 4,013 | 3.54% | 8.64% | 0.46 | 1.71 |
| $12,500 to $14,999 | 3,543 | 3.13% | 12.18% | 0.50 | 1.84 |
| $15,000 to $17,499 | 3,760 | 3.32% | 15.31% | 0.67 | 1.99 |
| $17,500 to $19,999 | 3,438 | 3.03% | 18.63% | 0.73 | 2.10 |
| $20,000 to $22,499 | 4,061 | 3.58% | 21.66% | 0.84 | 2.11 |
| $22,500 to $24,999 | 3,375 | 2.98% | 25.24% | 0.79 | 2.14 |
| $25,000 to $50,000 (26.65%) | 1 | 2.5 | |||
| $25,000 to $27,499 | 3,938 | 3.48% | 28.22% | 0.93 | 2.21 |
| $27,500 to $29,999 | 2,889 | 2.55% | 31.70% | 1.01 | 2.30 |
| $30,000 to $32,499 | 3,921 | 3.46% | 34.25% | 1.12 | 2.38 |
| $32,500 to $34,999 | 2,727 | 2.41% | 37.71% | 1.17 | 2.39 |
| $35,000 to $37,499 | 3,360 | 2.96% | 40.12% | 1.22 | 2.36 |
| $37,500 to $39,999 | 2,633 | 2.32% | 43.08% | 1.25 | 2.49 |
| $40,000 to $42,499 | 3,378 | 2.98% | 45.40% | 1.31 | 2.46 |
| $42,500 to $44,999 | 2,294 | 2.02% | 48.38% | 1.38 | 2.60 |
| National Median | $44,389 | 50.00% | 1.35 | 2.57 | |
| $45,000 to $47,499 | 2,700 | 2.38% | 50.40% | 1.39 | 2.60 |
| $47,500 to $49,999 | 2,371 | 2.09% | 52.78% | 1.49 | 2.62 |
| $50,000 to $75,000 (18.27%) | 2 | 3 | |||
| $50,000 to $52,499 | 3,071 | 2.71% | 54.87% | 1.46 | 2.60 |
| $52,500 to $54,999 | 2,006 | 1.77% | 57.58% | 1.58 | 2.72 |
| $55,000 to $57,499 | 2,420 | 2.13% | 59.35% | 1.61 | 2.75 |
| $57,500 to $59,999 | 1,786 | 1.57% | 61.48% | 1.70 | 2.87 |
| $60,000 to $62,499 | 2,566 | 2.26% | 63.05% | 1.63 | 2.82 |
| $62,500 to $64,999 | 1,774 | 1.56% | 65.31% | 1.79 | 2.89 |
| $65,000 to $67,499 | 2,101 | 1.85% | 66.87% | 1.81 | 2.93 |
| $67,500 to $69,999 | 1,637 | 1.44% | 68.72% | 1.74 | 2.80 |
| $70,000 to $72,499 | 1,978 | 1.74% | 70.16% | 1.77 | 2.88 |
| $72,500 to $74,999 | 1,413 | 1.24% | 71.90% | 1.82 | 3.00 |
| $75,000 to $100,000 (10.93%) | 2 | 3 | |||
| $75,000 to $77,499 | 1,802 | 1.59% | 73.14% | 1.82 | 2.95 |
| $77,500 to $79,999 | 1,264 | 1.11% | 74.73% | 1.98 | 3.04 |
| $80,000 to $82,499 | 1,673 | 1.47% | 75.84% | 1.89 | 3.01 |
| $82,500 to $84,999 | 1,219 | 1.07% | 77.31% | 1.97 | 3.10 |
| $85,000 to $87,499 | 1,418 | 1.25% | 78.38% | 1.94 | 3.00 |
| $87,500 to $89,999 | 984 | 0.86% | 79.63% | 1.98 | 3.03 |
| $90,000 to $92,499 | 1,282 | 1.13% | 80.49% | 1.95 | 3.03 |
| $92,500 to $94,999 | 917 | 0.81% | 81.62% | 2.17 | 3.25 |
| $95,000 to $97,499 | 1,023 | 0.90% | 82.43% | 2.06 | 3.29 |
| $97,500 to $99,999 | 846 | 0.74% | 83.33% | 2.12 | 3.33 |
| $100,000 or more (15.93%) | 2 | 3 | |||
| $100,000 to $149,999 | 11,940 | 9.89% | 84.07% | ca. 2 | ca. 3 |
| $150,000 to $199,999 | 3,595 | 3.17% | 93.96% | ||
| $200,000 to $249,999 | 1,325 | 1.37% | 97.13% | ||
| $250,000 and above | 1,699 | 1.50% | 98.50% | ||
Well then I was rich for a couple of years...a few years ago:-) I’ll be rich again someday...
85K in Fairfax County VA for a family of 4 is the poverty line.
$150K as being rich in this county is LAUGHABLE.
85K in Fairfax County VA for a family of 4 is the poverty line.
$150K as being rich in this county is LAUGHABLE.
I hate G*D* socialists...
The entire debate about this in America has shown that few people really understand the difference between income and wealth. Senior NYC teachers make 100K a year, but they have pensions that are worth a million bucks, own homes on Long Island worth $500-800 K, and have contributed to Tax deferred annuities that can reach half a million, and which are invested in the Market. Yet I know not one, after working with them for 25 years who would identify themselves as rich. In fact I know some who demonstrated with the OWS loons.
150K KEEPS going down...
Do we call this poorness creep?..
Is that $150k gross or MAGI? Or is the fact that I know to ask enough to put me in the 1% by itself?
A more important point is “who” did they poll? The feral inner-city population? High school students? Illegal aliens?
An explination or breakdown of the the polls demographics would go a long way towards explaining who these ignorant buffoons are.
FYI...My wife and I made $200K last year, but we are no where near being rich.
It’s too bad the jerks at Politico either don’t know the definition of “rich,” or don’t know the difference between an income statement and a balance sheet.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.