Middle Class Americans 'No Longer Majority,' New Report Says - NBC News: "According to Pew's report, the 21st century has seen "middle-income Americans" fall behind financially. The median income of middle income households fell by 4 percent between the year 2000 and 2014, while median wealth - assets minus debts - fell by 28 percent between 2001 and 2013.
In 2015, 9 percent of Americans were seen as being in the highest income tier, "more than double the 4 percent share in 1971." The percentage of American adults in the lowest income tier has also risen, from 16 percent in 1971 to 20 percent in 2015.
In 2015 12 percent of adults were living in the upper middle tier, up from 10 percent in 1971. Nine percent were seen as being in the lower middle tier, unchanged from 1971.
The report defines middle income homes as "those with an income that is 67 percent to 200 percent... of the overall median household income, after incomes have been adjusted for household size."
It finds that "the hollowing of the American middle class has proceeded steadily for more than four decades," and that the share of Americans residing in middle-income homes "has fallen from 61 percent in 1971 to 50 percent in 2015."
The report finds that the biggest winners since the seventies are those 65 and over. Their poverty rate has fallen from 24.6 percent in 1970 to just 10 percent in 2014. In contrast, young adults - those aged between 18 and 29 - have seen their share in lower income tiers increase. "
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