Poll: How Do You Define Middle Income?
Both presidential candidates' definitions of "middle income" differ from the U.S. Census. Gov. Mitt Romney says it's $200,000 to $250,00 and less, and President Barack Obama says it's up to $250,000. How do you define it?
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During an interview last Friday, Republican Presidential candidate Gov. Mitt Romney told ABC's "Good Morning America" that middle income is "$200,000 to $250,000 and less."
President Barack Obama's description of middle income is similar. According to the Associated Press, Obama defines middle class as families with income up to $250,000 a year.
Both of these descriptions differ greatly from numbers recently released by the U.S. Census. The real median household income in the United States in 2011 was $50,054, according to the U.S. Census.
In light of the conflicting numbers from politicians and the U.S. Census, we'd like to know how you define "middle income."
Post a comment below to share your thoughts and join in the discussion.
Jamie Robe
3:03 pm on Friday, September 21, 2012
I checked other. It really depends on how many people are in the household. If we are talking multiple incomes, with kids and so on, I think the top end is somewhere around $150ish. Beyond that and I think you start to pull away from the middle income. This also doesn't take into account ages of people involved. Young people starting out in life are going to have lots less income, but still be middle income.
I guess one definition might be a household when a $1000 refund check or tax credit is actually a BIG deal. Someone making $250K is not going to get very excited about that, as their electric bill might be that on their 5000 sq ft house and heated swimming pool.