Middle-class Americans are now outnumbered.
As of early 2015, there were 120.8-million U.S. adults in middle-income households, versus 121.3 million who were in lower and upper-income households combined, according a Pew Research Center report. The middle class's near 50-per-cent share of the U.S. adult population is down from a 61-per-cent share in 1971, highlighting a demographic shift that is sure to be a topic of discussion in the run-up to next year's presidential election.
There were 51-million U.S. adults in upper-income households and 70.3 million in the lower level, according to the report.
If there's a silver lining, it's that millions more Americans now reside in the upper-income tier. However, Pew notes the nation's total household income has "substantially shifted" from the middle class to upper-income households. In part, this is due to the swelling ranks of the upper class, but also because of "more rapid gains in income at the top."
Middle-class Americans "have fallen further behind financially" this century, Pew says. Last year, the median income for these households was 4.5 per cent lower than in 2000 on an adjusted basis.
To read the Pew report, click here.