When I was young I said I wanted to grow up and be rich,.. well I'm far from it, but do have friends with alot of money. The big clencher is that they have much larger bills as well. Additionally, no matter how much money you have,.. there will always be some one with more than you. For example, you might have Citation 10, but some one might pull up next to you with an Global Express. Its just a simple quesiton,.. how do you define being rich?

 

Being rich is how you use your money. To me rich people have assets that pay for their liabilities. Your friends may have money, but it appears all they are doing is buying more liabilities. To me that is acting poor. I know someone who pulls in over $400K a year, but nothing to show for it. I also know someone who made $40k a year and now is worth over $2million. He knew how to use his money by buying as much realestate as possible while the people who make $400K year just buy cars, clothes, and go on vacation all the time.

Sam

 

a better question then is how much net worth is "rich"?

 

I consider "rich" to be when my assets earn enough interest or income on their own to support my lifestyle without me having to work.

Another goal is to figure out how to pay no taxes at all.... call me republican... or cynical... I just don't want to pay for other people's choices of stupidity in life.

 

Something useful would be data on the income of the general population. See what percentage we're all at..

 

Although this is old data I was able to find this:

Use this snapshot of financial America circa 2001 to find your place.

--Reporter: COURTNEY MCGRATH

WHO MAKES WHAT

AVERAGE HOUSEHOLD INCOME: $53,100

White: $58,800

Nonwhite or Hispanic: $33,500

HEAD OF HOUSEHOLD ...

is working for someone else: $53,500

is self-employed: $109,000

is retired: $32,900

SLICING THE PIE

IF YOUR FAMILY INCOME THEN YOU'RE AMONG
IS AT LEAST ... THE TOP ...

$355,000 1%
130,600 5
93,800 10
60,800 25
33,400 50
MEDIAN NET WORTH

all U.S. households: $71,600

top 10% of households: $900,000

top 1% of households: $5.9 million

households age 65-74: $146,500

White: $94,900

Nonwhite or Hispanic: $16,400

HEAD OF HOUSEHOLD ...

is working for someone else: $52,400

is self-employed: $248,100

is retired: $113,000

WHAT THEY MAKE

ANNUAL AVERAGE SALARY AND BONUS FOR ...

Someone earning federal minimum wage: $10,710

A retiree receiving average monthly social security check: $10,140

(Maximum for someone retiring in 2001: $18,480)

First-year schoolteacher:

nationwide: $26,640

in Alaska: $32,885

in North Dakota: $19,140

First-year police officer: $29,860

in Detroit: $28,055

in Roswell, N.M.: $23,005

Web-site general manager/ administrator: $109,700

Portfolio manager of a U.S. stock mutual fund: $153,000

Family doctor: $141,495

Heart surgeon: $468,690

Median financial assets of households ages 55 to 64: $45,600

FAMILIES WHO ...

own stock directly or indirectly: 48.8%

own shares of stocks directly: 19.2%

don't have a bank account: 9.5%

have an online brokerage account: 6.5%

HOME SWEET HOME

Median value of primary residence: $100,000

Median home equity: $38,000

Americans who own a second home: 12.8%

WHO PAYS THE TAXES

THIS PERCENTAGE PAYS THIS PERCENTAGE
OF TAXPAYERS ... OF FEDERAL INCOME TAX

1% 33%
5 55
10 63
25 82
50 96
THE PRICE OF SHELTER

Median monthly mortgage payment: $720

New mortgages with loan-to-value ratios ...

80% or less: 66%

80% to 90%: 13%

over 90%: 21%

New mortgages with adjustable rates: 19%

PAYING WITH PLASTIC

Households carrying a credit card balance: 44%

Median balance: $1,700

53% pay off the balance in full each month.

28% say they hardly ever pay off the balance.

GIVING BACK

AVERAGE CHARITABLE DEDUCTIONS

for all itemizers: $3,125

for those with adjustable gross income under $15,000: $1,175

for those with AGI of $100,000 to $200,000: $3,620

WHERE THE MONEY GOES

SHARE OF HOUSEHOLD SPENDING ON ...

shelter: 33%

transportation: 18.6%

food: 13.5%

retirement-plan contributions and FICA taxes: 8.4%

health care: 5.4%

entertainment: 4.9%

apparel: 4.7%

miscellaneous: 11.5%

 

ugh.. statistics like that are worthless without showing soem type of standard deviation...

and even less comforting over here in the valley

 

By looking at those median numbers, Cali makes them look rediculous, or the other way around.

I wanna move somewhere like North Carolina, buy my house in cash, and save.

Then, again, I don't...


On Topic:

I dunno, I guess I would consider someone "rich", if they had the option not to work. Like living off interest and junk. Having 1.5mil in the bank and owning your own house (in cali) would be rich to me.

Then again you can be spiritually "rich" or "fulfilled" going on tour and living out of a van, but that isn't the same now is it????

 

To me, being "rich" is equated to being a "millionaire". Just a random number really; it's psychological.

-Bob

 

As chris rock put it... theres a difference of having riches, or having wealth. shaq is rich, the guy who cuts his check is wealthy. being rich is diddly squat.

im riiich biiiatch.. thank you.