I think the key to not feeling "poor" when you are actually middle class is to live below your means and to not care what others think of your lifestyle.

@bryan_witha_whyy

Жыл бұрын

Very true. I make the same income or more as many of my kids’ friends parents. They live in twice the house we do. Doesn’t bother us one bit.

@janae09

Жыл бұрын

So true. Like Dave says, “Normal is BROKE, be weird.”

@LAINCOMOSERMILLONARI0

Жыл бұрын

*Learning to avoid high lnterest debt while also learning how to put your money to work for you by lnvesting is a very powerful combo (especially when you learn young) The earlier you start lnvesting ur money and putting it to work, the more time compound interest has to work its magic on your portfolio.* *$89k monthly dividend returns on my lnvestment account with Tracy Britt Cool is how I'm going to achieve early retirement and it's possible for everyone. All you need to do is learn and start.*

@thedude5040

Жыл бұрын

Im in the upper middle class living in a true middle class neighborhood and my word do these people have some expensive vehicles. I actually make enough to warrent a new $70k truck, but i just drive a nice $25k car i got new in 2020.

@autumnmoore1492

Жыл бұрын

Living below your means makes you feel poor.

I have been in houses of those living in poverty and those who operate million dollar businesses, one thing that is the same is they all hoard grocery bags.

Sharon could’ve been duping you Rachel. Keep the Cap’n Crunch bag and just refill it with the Great Value cereal. 😜

The side-by-side refrigerator was an indicator of middle class fancy back in the late 90s early 2000s

@Imbatmn57

4 күн бұрын

I have one of those that came with my house, i miss the top/bottom one thats at my mom's house because it was easier to stack stuff in the freezer, mine i cant move the shelves where i want because how the freezer is built.

I'm Sharon Ramsey's age. I grew up lower middle class. My dad was a teacher, my mom was a sahm. We didn't have snacks or pop (soda) in our house...we couldn't afford it. We went out to eat maybe twice a year; once to a pizza place, once to an inexpensive steak house. We had one car until I was in junior high. I had no idea what luxury or designer brands were, as my mom sewed all of our clothes.

Our family has made watching this show a weekly tradition 👨‍👩‍👧 Tonight we were eating Peanut Butter Crunch, Fish Sticks, and leftovers. Basically as middle class as it gets 😂

Raised lower middle class, I was impressed by my rich friends that had "real" Barbie dolls. Which they kindly played with me.

Middle class raised, middle class now and debt free. Thanks to God and Ramsey Solutions. Please keep doing what you do.

Middle class bougie was a dedicated phone line for the dial up internet😂

Rachel didn't know it, But she was a rich kid, She just wasn't raised rich

This video has made me realize that everyone I thought was rich, was just middle class. I was jealous of middle-class fancy skip-jump toy and pogo stick, Dirt bikes, go karts, Horse lessons, being on a soccer team, going to Disney Land, having an above ground pool or trampoline, Foosball, N64, basketball hoop.

@melissahood2960

11 ай бұрын

I thought they were rich, too. The "rich" kids always seemed to have fathers

@rnewland89

3 ай бұрын

Each of those individually is middle class but all of those combined is upper class!

Oh my gosh! Inground pools are it!!! My thing I was jealous of was other kids who had those battery-powered little cars you could sit in and drive around in

@allikat1352

2 ай бұрын

I still am jealous of those kids!

@MrBSchmitty

2 ай бұрын

@@allikat1352 it never goes away lol

🥺 oh dang, I was poor poor growing up, eating out was going to the local swap meet and getting food from the vendors. Only thrift stores and hand me downs. My teacher send my parents a note asking them to buy me another pair of shoes, because that’s what all I had and the kids were apparently making fun of me. We didn’t celebrate accomplishments, and our outings were the beach (that was nice and free). It has made me really appreciate now being middle class, and I am determined to become a millionaire. Doing those baby steps and leaving my daughter a legacy 🎉❤

I would love to see a discussion about why there are so many trailer parks with high HOA fees. I feel like this is defeating the purpose of owning a home.

@rnewland89

3 ай бұрын

Private equity. Black Rock. Greed.

Your graft showed the upper and lower income population is growing, thereby shrinking the middle class. I'd say middle class is shrinking. I'm 70 years old and old enough to see it how it's changed over the years. People are spending more than they make then going into unnecessary debt. You're helping people see the error in that style of living. I applaud you for that, it's extremely important. I've also seen stagnant income over several decades, while housing and basic needs have increased substantially. Real estate has become an investment instead of decent housing where people live. My parents first home was $6000. My first home was $19,500. I sold it 2 years later for double that amount, the beginning of the housing boom. In the future it will be challenging to create a balance in this area. We've seen it in the homeless population - they're not all mentally ill or on drugs. Some legitimately don't have options. We've seen it in the Tiny House trend too. Change is drastically needed in this area. Thanks for the video.

Middle Class parents have a psychic connection to the thermostat !

What if we started measuring classes based on debt to income ratio instead of income? Different amounts of debt (consumer and otherwise) and cost of living in different areas leave too many variables...

@christineshah7330

5 ай бұрын

We are middle class income, upper class net worth because of no debt and a Roth IRA started nearly 30 years ago now. We are unlikely to ever spend our retirement income because it will be tens of thousands more than we spend now as a family of four! lol

Generic products in the 70's were white boxes with black writing at our local Piggly Wiggly. As generic as you can get and our special out to eat which was not very often was Bonanza which is the save vibe as Ponderosa. You got your tray and went through the line.

@bettedavis9261

Жыл бұрын

Yes! Bonanza and Ponderosa! I felt so rich when we went (once a year).

My parents also filed for bankruptcy when I was in middle school, it was rough at the time mainly because I had to give up my new pup. But now I look back and realize we had riches (Love, Faith and each other) just not material ones and those matter more. I appreciate all the sacrifices my parents made ❤ I have learned so much from our little struggles and know some people had it much worse then us so I was grateful for what we did have.

@katyedwards3935

Жыл бұрын

How are you now? Did you ever break away and follow Dave's plan?

@GoldenAgeVentures

Жыл бұрын

I never want to go back there and I follow Dave's plan, my Dad still doesn't get it unfortunately, my mom gets it more but still lives on credit ☹ they have been to a live event and went through a class so idk what will get them to change for good but I'm breaking the cycle. I am debt free ❤

Lol, great episode, I've lived in the normal middle class but was also mindful as a kid to not ask to go to the movies if it wasn't around pay day 🤣 also definitely, the garage fridge guys were the rich ones hahahaha

I’m a pizza delivery driver. I make less than minimum wage because they rely on customer tips to pay the difference. The issue with that is that no one seems to tip anymore. I get tips from about 25% of the orders I deliver. Don’t let tipping the pizza delivery person die either!

@kaelaleedaley

Жыл бұрын

Amen! Xx

@el-hp1lj

Жыл бұрын

uber and those brands killed your tips. People are paying a premium for the product and other fees. unfortunately people have a sour taste about tipping after paying over 20 for 1 pizza pie. Dont take it personally, its just the way it is now

@kaelaleedaley

Жыл бұрын

@@el-hp1lj That and greedy franchise holders - you're absolutely right, it's not the fault of the customer at all x

My boyfriend and I have used the nickname "fajitas" to people we know who create drama for attention, for like the last six years, I laughed so hard at this segment of the show, so glad other people get that reference!! 😂😂... Absolutely love Rachel and George you guys are great!

We have an economy based on unlimited growth. We should not assume 2% inflation every year is the norm. This is what the problem with our economic structure is. Cars have not improved as much as the price on cars has increased. Cars should have gotten cheaper to make as technology advances similar to any electronics. So why have cars gone from costing $20k to $60k? This is not normal. Neither is the raise in education or healthcare costs. This is price gouging which is allowed by the people because we are trained to expect prices to always be going up even though they really shouldn’t be. When oil was $60 a barrel in the 90’s gas was less then a dollar. Gas has not really changed much but when oil was around $30 a barrel, gas got as low as $2 in most of the country. Why? The only way infinite growth happens is consumerism, constantly buying the newest and latest electronics, cars, constantly replacing furniture, and so on. If Americans stopped with this mindset, prices will drop as demand drops off a cliff.

@donaldlyons17

Жыл бұрын

The entire system might fail if people don't buy. So many jobs are tied to buying!!! I don't see not having high unemployment without lots of buying. Gig laws are passed because some people can't pay their bills as it stands.

Lol 😂 when I was a kid, waterbeds & swimming pools were doing very well. The things I have now that my childhood self would be impressed with? 2 refrigerators (1 in garage), 2freezers (1 in garage), an espresso machine made in Italy 🇮🇹… and a commercial floor to ceiling (Pre-loved) sonic ice machine in our garage. And we’ve had all for years 😂 and to be fair, we had a chest freezer in our basement as a kid (which was the playroom for awhile until my mother (MAJOR HOARDER) got ahold of it and that was the end of that. Oh! And a Christmas tree. Sad I know but our house was a hoarders dream & everyone else’s nightmare & we only ever ONCE had a Christmas tree & I was about 4 or 5 at the time . So now it’s still 1 of my favorite Christmas decorations. & for the most part my mom was a stay at home mom but more often than not she worked 2-3 jobs once I was 9 (latchkey kid!) to pay the bills as my dad drank all his $$ away. Taught me EXACTLY HOW I DID NOT WANT TO SPEND MY LIFE and the type of person I didn’t want to be and what I refused to put up with or marry!

So glad I came across your show. Gives encouragement to keep at this debt with passion.

@autumnmoore1492

Жыл бұрын

False hope

How interesting, right after the quiz about growing up middle class, there was a commercial break for visiting the Biltmore Estate. Bougie!!!....

I lived in NY and was considered lower middle class. Moved to AZ and now I am upper middle class.

Middle class raised here. I had one frugal parent and one spender parent, so I learned a lot from both! Also went to a private high school, so I was around families with a lot of wealth. It left a good example for me!

We have been following your baby steps for years and reached step 4 some time ago. But we never wanted to be rich. Thank you for doing this video. We love out debt free middle class lifestyle.

Thanks for being you, Rachel and George. Much love from Norway

I found the comment about the old fridge in the garage as being middle class (or upper class). I grew up middle class and we never had an extra fridge. However, my husband grew up relatively poor, and they had an old fridge in their garage.

The middle class is important. Keep it alive. You can be middle class and survive when you avoid debt.

Love listening to you guys. Always enjoy the content.

Favorite episode yet!! You guys compliment each other so well. 😊

Love these segments! Keep doing them!! Love all content and topics! You two are a hilarious combo!

We my husband and I bought our house it was a bit of a fixer upper so when we saved and were able to redo our kitchen I felt like I had made it with my quartz countertops lol. No laminate at this house 😂

So relatable! Love this channel!

When I was a kid in the 90s, it was friends with a pool or friends with satellite tv because we didn’t have either 😂

Love every one of these episodes. Thank you for coming up with this. Great content I can relate to and it's fun!

Middle class raised, working class now living in "poverty" (relative to the UK) and we feel so rich! Xx

Hey, for those of us old enough to remember.....Aldi had the black and white generic boxes. Oh the humiliation if a friend came over and you pulled out the frosted corn flakes😮 5:00

My mom did extreme couponing and my dad bought food in bulk all of the time and rarely ate out unless it was a celebration. Money was always tight but we always got by.

I love the show and wanted to share a potential show topic - How to Budget for a Vacation. Just an idea! Keep up the good work!!! :)

Great episode yall! 🙌🏾

George and Rachel- we do having The Melting Pot in Arlington, Tx! Yummy!! And George- it’s skillet queso at Chili’s!! Yummy yummy!!😊❤🎉

Back in 70’s there were more stay at home moms. So I think one takeaway is it’s harder to be in the middle class on one income or at least the upper end of middle class. It takes more to maintain the lifestyle of our parents Or we want to have a nicer lifestyle than our parents. As you mentioned the upper class is growing also. I think it’s probably partly due to two high income earners in a household. I live in a wealthy suburb and it’s common for drs to marry drs or engineer marrying an engineer, or other two high professionals. My college girlfriends with high careers also have husbands with high careers. They met their spouses in college or grad school. My household is a two income earning house. We do alright. But I’m surrounded by higher earners than us. If we lived on one income, we’d move down considerably.

32:46 “Waldorf Worldwide” is a song by Good Charlotte released in 2000.

Canada banned plastic bags, utensils and straws a while ago. I really miss them. After bringing my groceries home, we would use the bags to take our lunches to work and then use them again to line our small garbage baskets. Now we have to use bougie cloth bags to carry our groceries and lunches. Recently we were traveling and someone felt car sick and I was thinking what do you do if you have to vomit and you have no plastic bags? Cloth or paper bags just don't cut it.

I don't think we are obsessed with debt per se - but rather the things and the lifestyle we want are our obsession and debt is the means we use to satisfy those obsessions. And that gets us in trouble financially.

Love it haha! Yup the couches with cup holders and recline esp if was real leather haha! Also, yup a hot tub or pool. I’m around y’all’s age, and so we can totally relate. Love these shows y’all! Middle class woot woot 😜

Loved this episode! I’m a bit older than you, so I thought it would have been interesting to hear from “Sharon” maybe on a surprise phone call asking what she would have considered “fancy middle class” when she was young. First thing I thought was a phone in my bedroom, or some people had phones in the bathroom! 😂

My parents still have the same 38 yo fridge in the garage from when I was a kid.

@markg999

Жыл бұрын

Wow, they don't make stuff to last like that now.

Love the SLC Red Iguana call-out!

You all are taking me back with the Dillards Coach & Dooney & Burke bags. I still have my first Dooney I bought in 2005. I can't resell it on eBay so I guess I will keep it.

The weight of a society rests on the strong shoulders of the ''middle class''. I am proud to be a member of it! But even as middle class, I've paid off my home (a 1350 sq.ft. condo) in 10 yrs (on a 30 yr fixed rate), bought my Jeep (used) with cash and have no other debts. No one said it would be easy, but with determination & thru God's grace it can be done!

From my experience in the early 2000's, waiting tables at Texas Roadhouse did in fact work out to be about $12 an hour. You only get paid $2.13 an hour so that is definitely with tips. I still had my own apartment and a car payment. I only worked 4 days a week though, because I was in xray school which took up 40 hours a week.

So different… In England being middle class is about your family/ education/ attitudes/ manners/ priorities etc etc etc, not your income.

@beth3535

Жыл бұрын

As it used to be here. Sprinkle on entitlement and crass upper classes and that’s what your get.

Sizzler was our "fine dining" night out. 😁 Loved that buffet!!

I posted that I just paid off my mortgage on a 12-year plan. Previously I had a 30 year but with the change in interest rate and shortening the term (keeping the monthly within the painless range) I saved $28K. June will be the first month in forever that I haven’t had a mortgage payment. First step? Increasing my retirement contribution in an hourly part time job to 25%. While I have no debts, I do have to build my sinking funds for renovations plumbing and baths). So that’s ongoing but will be tackled more aggressively. I’ve had these goals earmarked so my savings starting in June would be captured right away.

Rich kids had cable with MTV.

i hear you Rachel...Blair Waldorf and those iconic headbands

Middle class in the 70's was going to restaurants like "Bonanza" and "Ponderosa", assembly line steak places with the baked potato, salad!

Excellent episode. You guys are so funny.

I’m upper class, but I declare every time my husband and I test out upper class dinning,I’m usually frustrated with costs and quantity of food. I feel like we are paying for the status of being there. I leaving hungry and ripped off😢😖. I absolutely love Cheesecake Fact. If I had no debt, I still don’t think I would scale up my dining.

@HashPhantom

Жыл бұрын

Eating out in general is highly overrated

@christineshah7330

5 ай бұрын

My thing is to go to the fancy restaurant, watch my friends get $100+ steaks and I order the $16 prime cuts cheeseburger. It's always AMAZING. They are happy with their food, I am happy with mine...everyone wins. I like steak but I don't like it $100.

I have to disagree with George trader joes bags are the ultimate shopping bags.

Waldorf salad...I'm down!!! love you two smarty pants peeps!!

Thank you!

I went to Outback for the first time with my high school friends and, when the bill came for us to split, one of them asked the waiter "I'm sorry Mam, but did we eat gold?" 😂

The fajita part got me laughing hard 😂😂

I thought the rain thing was only with farmers. Also Cheddar's was the highest end restaurant in the nearest "large" town. You still wait about an hour most days for a table at Cheddars.

The hack my wife found is use an empty 12 fridge-pack of pop cans to put our plastic grocery bags in. The bags creeping halfway up the wall of the broom closet wasn't working for me.

Loved this episode

For the rain comment. No one in my family ever said that. First because we lived in a row home and didn’t have a lawn. Second, my dad was a roofer and didn’t work/get paid when it rained/snowed/too windy 😮

Oh my word! My husband can not stand the melting pot! He says I just paid these people $150 to make my own dinner! 🤣🤣🤣 that being said I love it and they run specials (on Wednesdays I think) to make it very adorable.

@reesercliff

Жыл бұрын

How adorable? 😍

I have to chuckle about the plastic bags. Oregon banned them for a while, and then allowed really heavy duty ones. Now, in the past month or so, our local Walmarts have stopped carrying any bags at all. If you forget to bring your own bags in from the car, You get to reload your cart and then load it into the car without the use of bags. I almost never shop, Walmart anyway, and that’s just one more reason not to! I’d rather pay five cents for a paper bag at Winco, or Fred Meyer, then to do without if I forgot mine at Walmart

@AbidingHopeMentalHealthCoach

Жыл бұрын

Two more thoughts about bags: I did buy one of those containers to keep my plastic bags in, and I love it, because it’s so tight and compact, only about 4 inches wide, and doesn’t make a big disaster under the sink. Also, I’m not sure if I can describe it in written form, but there is an awesome way of closing bags that is secure enough for most things, but super easy to open. basically you put your hands through the open holes of the handles, and pull simultaneously both handles through the halls of the office and handles, and then do it again. This will be secure enough to keep groceries from spilling out in the car, but it opens very easily. it’s a trick a Ukrainian girl taught me that she learned from her grandmother or something. I’m surprised it hasn’t become more popular in other places.

Come to Pensacola for a Smart Money Happy Hour at The Melting Pot. We have one!

Back in middle school, my friend and I were talking about prom and where we would like to go eat. I said that I can see us wearing our prom dresses and eating out at a fancy restaurant like Olive Garden. She told me Olive Garden was not considered fancy lol

@Alex-12381

9 ай бұрын

I also grew up thinking Olive Garden was fancy

We thought Red Lobster once a year at my birthday was the epitome of RICH!

"Middle class fancy" for me was having a water dispenser built into the fridge and stainless steel appliances. Never had either growing up.

We used to have two refrigerators, until I gave one away because it was easier to do that then to try to get it back. We still have one, but we will keep it till it dies. And we have a big freezer that’s probably about half full at any given time.

@AbidingHopeMentalHealthCoach

Жыл бұрын

That is, two refrigerators in the garage. We still have two, but for a while we had 3!

Re: Great Value--we did not, b/c Walmart was late to our area and when it was here, it wasn't really near us. We did a lot of store brand though.

10:13 ooop Rachel telling us these videos aren’t coming out in the order they film 🤭

The only reason it ranges so much is because $50k is nice living as a single person. But if the household is 2, you have to double that. Also $50,000 goes really far in in say Alabama or Arkansas. Kinda far in Florida and we all not not far at all in California or New York.

We emigrated from the Philippines to Guam (USA) when I was a baby, and we started out poor (think, shack made of odd pieces of wood and corrugated steel on cinder blocks, with no indoor plumbing). My parents achieved lower middle class when I was about 8 yrs old. They bought an actual house in a development, albeit a small one about 900-1000 sq ft-a tight squeeze for a family of 7. I thought we’d made it until I started making friends with the kids in the neighborhood who had air conditioning. 😁. Now, THEY were movin’ on up!!

The FAJITAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yes! Not just the SOUND, but the SMELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL good gracious I am hungry now!

Dad always said It's not how much you make But how you spend what you have

Melting Pot! Still around! Littleton, CO

I guess I'm bougie cuz I put out one of those every Christmas. It's a cute little snowman.

agree'd Target bags are the best : )

Oh man all the middle class fancy things I thought were for rich kids: Goldfish Animal crackers Riding the penny horse at the grocery store Loreal shampoo Fruit by the foot Lunchables Soooo many things

5:00 Yooo George, where's the shoutout to Market Basket? 😂

I grew up in the middle of middle class. We had a refrigerator in the garage

That whole fajita convo made my kitchen smell like Chili's 😅

@je11omo

Жыл бұрын

Made my stomach growl at 9:42am! And I had breakfast just about 2 hour ago too! LOL

Can't believe Rachel doesn't know about the Chili's cookie skillet dessert. It's delicious haha. I've been to some very expensive restaurants and it's still one of my favorite desserts!

@markg999

Жыл бұрын

Chili's is very medicore...buy they do deserts well. Big chocolate lava cake fan ha.

@jeffreywyland5266

Жыл бұрын

@@markg999 we stopped going after they got rid of the “2 for $25”. Not worth it after they raised prices. Might as well go anywhere else.

All I heard was my heartbeat bc Rachel is too pretty 😍

I think we we’re probably lower middle class . We only went to red lobster when there was something to celebrate which was 1-2x a year. We didn’t go to Walmart much at that time it was local grocery store. No DB . There was once a month pizza nights or we end up making our own. Not much snacks were bought .

That huge income range is where your channels come in.

Yaaasssss Blair and headbands!!

Growing up, I thought that the kids who had matching bedroom furniture, a pool, or a sunken livingroom had way more money than we did.

For the lower class debt is a necessary evil. For the middle class debt is optional. For the upper class debt is a strategy.

@adamstowel

Жыл бұрын

Speaking as a former poor, debt was a middle class thing

@donaldlyons17

Жыл бұрын

@@adamstowel The poor people I knew only did not have debt by leaching off those with more money than themselves. There is really no reason a poor or even many richer people don't have debt because without enough money how is debt avoidable to afford anything but the very basics?