This is how much you have to earn in New Jersey to be ‘middle class’

If you can make it here you can make it anywhere right?  For all of its awesome qualities, New Jersey is not easy.  In particular, we are challenged financially in ways that other people across the country are not.  In fact, you may or may not even qualify as a middle-class family anymore.

We all have an idea of what being poor looks like and we also have our own idea of what makes someone rich.  What about the middle?  Lots of us think we fit there but don’t be so sure.

Let’s just start by saying this, you may be Rockefeller in Mississippi but very much on the struggle bus here in the northeast.  Let’s find out where you fall according to New Jersey standards.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey, there are some new guidelines to determine your social status.

Married couple/Two-person family

If you are married and have no kiddos, your household income needs to be in the range of approximately $57,000-$169,000

Three-person family

$71,000-$212,000

Four-person family

$87,000-$259,000

The median price for a very average home starts at $500,000 in New Jersey.

Everything is more expensive — I have a family of 5 and we spend at least $400 per week at the food store.  Now you know where you fall.

Is this info right around where you thought it would be or have the new ranges surprised you?

If you can afford it, these are the best places to live in New Jersey.