The Rachel Cruze Show - What Income Puts You In Upper, Middle and Lower Class?

Starting point is 00:00:05 All right, I'm not normally one for comparison, and I firmly believe that your value is not on how much money you make. Your net worth is not your self-worth. But in America's economic landscape, it is evolving constantly, and sometimes it is helpful to keep track of your progress based on those around you. So today, I did want to share some recent stats on salary ranges so that you can see where you fall among other Americans. And later, I'll share three tips for using your income to build wealth. So before we get started, make sure to subscribe and share this episode with a friend. All right, according to the most recent data from Pew Research, the median income for middle class households has reached more than $106,000. So the full range for middle

Starting point is 00:00:54 income households is around $56,600 all the way up to $169,800. That is really middle income households. So lower income households earned $56,600 or less. And upper class households earned more than $169,800. So that's the range. And I'll be honest, when I read that, it felt like, oh my gosh, like the middle class. Like I'm like that, like earning a lot to reach that middle class, you know, status. Because yes, on the on the lower end, it is around that $60,000 mark, which is usually where we find 60 to 70 is usually the average, not the median, but the average household income. But when you look across the board of all of it, like how much money it takes today to live and survive. And it continues to change. You know, when I even think back when I entered

Starting point is 00:01:48 the workforce 15 years ago, like how different things have changed. You know, it's just, it is amazing to look over time. But I think it always is good to get a range on recent data just to know, again, where you are. But that wide range is so true, especially for that middle income tier. And I'm sure there are families out there who make, you know, $170,000 and they don't really feel like their upper class necessarily. And again, we see that this is so true when you look across America because the averages, again, are anywhere from California to Ohio. And if you make $170,000 in California, that's much different than Ohio when you take into everything that comes into account with taxes and all of that. And also remember that salaries are temporary. They're naturally or should be

Starting point is 00:02:32 going up over time. But these figures should give you a ballpark for where you fall. And no matter where that is, it is so important to know that it's possible to build wealth no matter where your starting point is. And because income is your most powerful wealth building tool, there's a couple of things to keep in mind as you're working towards your next financial goal. So before we dive into that, I did want to tell you about one of our sponsors, delete me. I saw a headline recently that really caught my attention. One third of the U.S. population's background info is now public. So for a 115 million of us, data breaches mean our info is out there for anyone to find. And this is stuff like our names, addresses, phone numbers, and way more. And that is why I love and use delete me,

Starting point is 00:03:17 because they go in and find and remove your information from hundreds of data broker websites that buy, sell, and trade your personal data. So take control of your online privacy with delete me. Individual delete me plans are as low as $9 a month. So sign up today at join deleteme.com slash rachel for 20% off or click the link down in the description. And like I said, income is the most powerful tool that you have when it comes to building wealth. And now that you have an idea of kind of where you stack up financially, here's how I want you to use your income to reach the next milestone. Number one, make sure your current full-time job has growth opportunity, meaning over time your income should be increasing.

Starting point is 00:04:04 That is the goal, right? So whether it's you're stepping up in different positions or with a different company or if you're at the same company that you're continuing consistently to get raises because you are becoming more valuable with your experience. And over time, that income should go up. And also know that your income should be sustainable for your lifestyle. Now, there are seasons of sacrifice, that maybe you go and earn extra income because you're getting out of debt and all of that. But again, overall, not counting that, just your lifestyle in general should be sustainable when it comes to your full-time salary. Now, number two is you might consider a side hustle. Like we were just saying, you know, if there is something that, you know, you're trying to get out of debt or you're

Starting point is 00:04:43 trying to reach that next milestone, maybe even for a big dream vacation, you're like, hey, we could speed this up if we had some more cash. Maybe you're trying to build up an emergency fund. Like, whatever it is, just say, okay, there is a goal that I have out there. and maybe a side hustle can help, but that goal has an end in sight, because that's what's key. You don't want to have your full-time job and work extra for your whole life. That's not the goal here. The goal is to say, okay, maybe I do take on a side hustle for a period of time because I'm trying to reach the specific goal, but once that goal is accomplished, I can go back just to my full-time job, and that is enough to sustain our lifestyle. Now, if you do a side hustle, I have found that

Starting point is 00:05:20 when you go straight to the consumer, you're going to make more money. And what I mean by that is, like, you know, tutoring or private coaching, music lessons, as there's some way that you can go straight to that consumer, you're going to probably make more than having a middleman, meaning like an Uber or something, right? I mean, those are great side hustles, and if you want to do that, you can still make some great money. But if you do have this, like, knack about you,

Starting point is 00:05:42 like this little niche that you know something or able to do something that another person can't and you can go straight to the consumer, do that because you're going to find more money. That's what we found. And number three is to live on less than you make. this is how your income can be used as a wealth-building tool because you're using it and you're going to have margin on what you have to live off of and that margin is going to help you with your next financial goals. So whether that is, again, getting out of debt or an emergency fund, that's great.

Starting point is 00:06:08 But even if you're looking long-term and you're investing or doing things beyond just, you know, paying for your needs this month, that margin is going to be so crucial and your income is going to be the way to get that. Now, if you need a tool to help you when it comes to your budget, make sure to check out every dollar because when you are able to budget, you're able to find that margin and know where your income is going. And that is so crucial, again, to building wealth because your income is your largest wealth building tool. Now, learning to follow a monthly budget can be really tricky at first, especially if you've never used a spending plan. So if you want to check out my episode over here on 22 expenses to cut that you won't even

Starting point is 00:06:47 miss for a jump start, make sure to check that out. And if you're listening on podcasts, I will leave a link below. All right, you guys, remember to take control of your money and create a life you love.

The Rachel Cruze Show - What Income Puts You In Upper, Middle and Lower Class?

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