The Secret Shame of Middle-Class Americans

[rainbow]

I do wish people would not conflate 'class' with 'wealth'

Class & wealth are inextricably entwined & also together with intelligence.

Oh yes, you probably think the Kardashians are classy.

There are few exceptions

You must base this observation on your neighbours in the trailer park.

...not really a representative sample.

[laklak]

You can't accuse the Kardashian of stupidity, they've taken a poorly made sex tape and turned it into a financial empire. As for class, in the U.S. money talks and breeding walks. Sure, the Ks and Trump are stonewalled by Old Money, but they don't give a shit. Donald could well be the next Perez, Dog help us, so 'stupid' doesn't work there either. The stupid ones are the vapid idiots who put them where they are.

[Svartalf]

Who that Perez you're talking about, white man?

[mistermack]

That's the current iteration of the boom. But Brisbane and Perth boomed before Melbourne and Sydney. Perth has levelled out, but Brisbane still increased 7% last year.

But yeah, the craziest place is Sydney now. Some places are at 30x yearly pre-tax wages to buy a house. One suburb, Point Piper has a MEDIAN house price of $14 million!

I suppose there's nothing wrong with that, if it's not affecting the average person's ability to put a roof over their head.

What isn't clear, is who stands to lose the money, if the market plunges?
If the Australian taxpayer is standing guarantor for the banks, that's where the average person gets shat on.

[Tyrannical]

If the housing market plunges, it's the banks that take the hit if the homeowner defaults. But, that's part of the risk and why banks charge interest on loans. Until they whine for a bailout.

[pErvinalia]

That's the current iteration of the boom. But Brisbane and Perth boomed before Melbourne and Sydney. Perth has levelled out, but Brisbane still increased 7% last year.

But yeah, the craziest place is Sydney now. Some places are at 30x yearly pre-tax wages to buy a house. One suburb, Point Piper has a MEDIAN house price of $14 million!

I suppose there's nothing wrong with that, if it's not affecting the average person's ability to put a roof over their head.

What isn't clear, is who stands to lose the money, if the market plunges?
If the Australian taxpayer is standing guarantor for the banks, that's where the average person gets shat on.

Yeah, we do go guarantor for the banks. But middle Australia is also mortgaged to the hilt, so any rise in interest rates will smash them.

[Tero]

Most places you work at now pay by wire transfer, so you have to have at least a checking account with the minimum balance to get the paycheck.

[mistermack]

Most places you work at now pay by wire transfer, so you have to have at least a checking account with the minimum balance to get the paycheck.

I'm pretty sure that there are accounts available that don't offer credit facilities or cheque books.
An account where you can just draw cash from the hole in the wall, up to but not exceeding your balance ?