What do you define as "rich"

[TexasHusker]

The vast majority of Americans, when compared to the other people living in the world, are obscenely rich.

So what is "rich" to you ? A high net worth ? And what is high ? 1 million, 5 million, 10 million?

Or is it income? A $ million a year? More?

I'm wondering how many people admit to actually being rich. It's like a rainbow's end - everyone has an idea of what rich is, but if you seek out a person that fits that profile, they will likely point to someone ELSE that's rich.

[97guns]

i come from a lower middleclass upbringing and lifestyle and a million bucks in the year 2016 is a while lotta money to me and most everyone i associate with, then there are those who say a million isnt really that much now a days. the day i woke up and realized i was a millionair it felt like i had accomplished something uncomprehensible like climbing mount everest

for me and my lifestyle a million is big money

[rennigade]

When I think of someone who is rich I think of a net worth of 20 million+. Im sure 10 million + would suffice but the number 20 just comes to mind.

At 20 million its almost as if everything is "free." Meaning you just walk into a store whenever you want, pick something out, pay for it and not even notice a fluctuation in your banking...assuming you dont pay someone to take care of your finances/pay your credit card statements. A $1500 purchase means nothing.

[sv2007]

I agree with many of the personal finance books in that lifestyle has to be taken into account.

If you want just a number, then I think somebody with net worth of $20m+ and $10m+ of investable net assets is rich.

[sv2007]

When I think of someone who is rich I think of a net worth of 20 million+. Im sure 10 million + would suffice but the number 20 just comes to mind.

At 20 million its almost as if everything is "free." Meaning you just walk into a store whenever you want, pick something out, pay for it and not even notice a fluctuation in your banking...assuming you dont pay someone to take care of your finances/pay your credit card statements. A $1500 purchase means nothing.

Wow. I posted without reading your post!

$20m, good number.

[phantom]

My definition of a rich person is one who can afford to spend money on anything he desires without fear of not being able to afford something he wants more. I agree with rennigade that a rich person can walk into a store and buy something he wants without really noticing the impact on his finances. A person with simple desires can be rich with a lot less money than someone with expensive tastes.

Whether or not the seemingly endless supply of money has to come from investment earnings or continuous labor, depends on the person's relationship with work. A person who works for little more than the enjoyment of working, can definitely count the money that job brings in towards being rich.

I think I could feel rich with around $6 million in investments, but I'm not positive. I don't like to spend too much time dwelling on what I'd do with money I'm unlikely to ever have. So, I don't have a good idea of what all the things I'd buy if money were no object would cost.

Without some unexpected windfall, I am unlikely to hit my definition of rich. I like working, but there are other things I'd rather spend my time doing. So, I'd rather be stuck make spending decisions than continue earning money till I reach the point where it doesn't matter what I spend. I suspect most people will never count themselves as rich because they have similarly defined rich as a state of being that is just out of reach by definition.

I'm definitely not complaining or saying I don't have it really good. I definitely consider myself to be pretty well off financially, and I'm happy with my life. I just like to use the word rich to describe a state that I'm unlikely to see.

[TexasHusker]

I define rich as having what you want, and wanting what you have.

[Nika]

To me, rich is when your children can be as dumb as George Bush and still get into Yale and Harvard(and graduate!). Or when they can afford to fail time after time, and someone will still give them another company to run.

When you can try ventures again and again without fear that it will impact your family's lifestyle, education and other options, that means you are rich.

[Singuy]

To me, rich is when your children can be as dumb as George Bush and still get into Yale and Harvard(and graduate!). Or when they can afford to fail time after time, and someone will still give them another company to run.

When you can try ventures again and again without fear that it will impact your family's lifestyle, education and other options, that means you are rich.

LoL

I was having a conversation about setting up net worth and class levels(not very scientific, just my opinion and it's definitely debatable.)

I defined the working class as someone who have the opportunity to accumulate up to 100k in net worth before death

Middle class: opportunity to hit between 100k- 1million before death

Upper middle: between 1million-10million

Upper class: 10 million+

And I consider people in the upper class to be rich.

[~bs]

wealthy (accumulated savings) enough to replace your yearly normal salary with interests,rent,dividends, capital appreciation, etc in the long run. So youre rich if you can afford to simply quit work for the rest of your life, and still enjoy the same lifestyle with no reduction in principal.

my threshold is probably a bit lower than most's definition. I'm guessing for a single person income, you might be looking at $1 - $1.4mil in assets using a reasonably conservative rate of return. Doubled for married folk. So the middle class family probably won't attain that level until near retirement.

[clatoden99]

Baseline would be having assets sufficient to support a comfortable (lower end of 1%ers) lifestyle during expected remaining life without having to work. Call this "financial independence." I would define the lower bound of "rich" at a 2-3X multiple of the financial independence amount. You probably need 10X that amount before you would be universally considered "rich."

[dawnwes]

No idea really, other than having so much money that you don't have to worry about money and know that even if you never worked another day in your life, you would have everything you ever needed or wanted.

My husband used to do taxes for high net worth individuals. In NC that meant NASCAR and banking. In CA it meant celebrities. The numbers he dealt with were staggering to most of us small folks. Millions of dollars.

[parafly]

In my mind, being "rich" is not a specific number and goes beyond an individual. I would define it as having considerable wealth to pass down to future generations whether it's your own descendants or charity.

If your wealth doesn't outlive you, then I don't think you can really be considered rich.

[FLA]

to me rich is having enough to be as comfortable as I am now and then a little bit more. Plus, money saved put away, like I have 500k in retirement and have the asset of my house. I am low income now and that scares me but IDK, rich was never the goal in the first place. I just wanted to save enough to never be a burden on anyone. What really makes you rich? Health, being well enough to work at something you love, family and friends and throw in dogs for me.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

Probably $20M is good. $1-5M isn't enough to really splurge and afford everything.