People would be surprised to see how little the average household has saved for retirement how much debt seniors are carrying into their 60's. The problem is a lot of people believe that "upper middle class" means owning expensive cars, nice homes, and dressing in nice clothes. They live above their means and end up with little savings and debt as they age. So the cut-off numbers mentioned are not that far off.
Our neighbors thought we were struggling until they found out we had zero debt and retired early and own two homes free and clear. This was just because we didn't change our cars every 2-3 years and have a gardener cut our grass, or a pool man maintain our pool. We didn't have boats or class A RVs like they did. The reality is that being upper middle class has more to do with your education, your actual net worth and quality of life. I would rather live comfortably under the radar than show off fancy cars and designer clothes. As an example, last month my wife and I were waiting for our return flight to Los Angeles from Ft Lauderdale. We were wearing jeans and sneakers. Nothing wrong with that and we are both in very good shape as we train regularly. A woman who was dressed well, with nice shoes, and fake LV handbag, started staring at my wife with that condescending look. When they were calling us for boarding, she stepped in front of us and started heading to the counter. We thought she was rude. The airline person at the counter looked at her ticket at stated, we are calling mint class (Jet Blue Business Class) not coach and refused her entry. I just rolled my eyes and my wife was laughing. She became angry and had to step to the side. She watched us being welcomed by the Jet Blue representative and head for our seats. We both had Jet Blue Mint Suite seats booked. Each seat has the same width as 3 seats in coach, with a lie flat bed, satellite TV, high speed internet, and a sliding door for additional privacy. As the lady entered the plane, the flight attendant held her back and told her to wait as he was serving the welcome drinks to the Mint Class passengers. The look on that ladies face as she passed our Suite seats and saw us seated was priceless. Appearances are not always what they seem.