7 Everyday Things The Middle Class Can't Afford Anymore
The shrinking middle class is feeling the squeeze.
Andrey K | Unsplash Is there anyone who’s middle-class anymore? Looking around me, I feel like I’m the only one left. A unicorn in a world of people who are much richer than myself, or much poorer than I am.
No intention to toot my own unicorn horn here, it’s just that I feel lonely in a world where I can’t connect financially with almost anyone. The ones who have much more money can do many more things and want people around them who can do the same.
And the ones who have much less are always complaining about it — for good reason. I’m not blaming them. I was poor not too long ago, and I know how excruciating it is and how much mental space it consumes. It’s just so draining.
Remember when being middle class actually meant something? Like, really meant something. The picket fence, the modest two-story home, a family sedan that didn’t double as a second bedroom, and a little savings account that didn’t trigger spontaneous laughter every time you looked at it. Those were the days … and as usual, we never know we’ve got them until they’re gone.
Being middle-class used to be the American Dream. Now it’s more like the American Inside Joke. You’re not quite poor enough for help, but definitely not rich enough to help yourself. You’re too broke to live well but too financially stable to complain out loud without guilt.
It’s like being stuck on a treadmill of rising costs and sinking hopes — just fast enough to stay alive but not enough to go anywhere. It’s the treadmill of nightmares, this one. Welcome to adulthood, where dreams go to quietly cry into their overpriced oat milk lattes.
Here are 7 everyday things the middle class can't afford anymore:
1. Owning a home
Let’s kick things off with the elephant in the mortgage application: home ownership. Once upon a simpler time, you could buy a home with a decent job, a handshake, and a promise. Now you need a 780 credit score, $100k for a down payment, a sacrificial goat, and maybe a fairy godmother to co-sign.
I’m fine with everything but the sacrificial goat here, just saying. It’s enough that we sacrifice ourselves; there’s no need to harm animals in the process.
The thing is, home prices have outpaced wages for decades. Add in interest rates that yo-yo like a caffeinated toddler, and the result is an entire generation priced out of the housing market.
Millennials and Gen-Z aren’t delaying home ownership because they love apartment living and roommates named Kyle who steal their oat milk. They’re doing it because the average starter home costs more than their entire life savings — and possibly their soul.
Today, being pre-approved feels more like winning the lottery than qualifying for a loan. Zillow has become real estate Tinder: swipe left on anything under $500k because it either burned down in 2007 or has a built-in serial killer history.
2. Healthcare that doesn’t send you to the ER
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Getting sick used to mean calling a doctor. Now it means Googling your symptoms, spiraling into an existential crisis, and praying it’s just allergies. Which is not so great either — people with allergies can confirm.
Health insurance premiums are so high that it feels like you’re buying a used car every month. People delay care until they’re practically bleeding from the eyes, not because they hate doctors, but because that urgent care visit could tank next month’s rent.
Oh, and mental health? That’s a whole different pricing tier. Therapy might save your life, but only if you can afford not to eat for three weeks. And who needs a life where you can’t afford to eat, right?
3. Family vacations that don’t require a credit check
Time off used to mean loading the minivan, hitting the road, and making core memories at a reasonable cost. Now, a family trip to literally anywhere costs more than your annual car insurance.
A flight for four? That’ll be $2,000 if you book nine months in advance and agree to sit in the engine room. You know how much it costs me to fly from Europe to Los Angeles? Around $1500, even if I book half a year in advance.
The theme park tickets? You could sponsor a small nation for the same price. And don’t forget the $9 water bottles, because dehydration isn’t covered by travel insurance.
More and more middle-class families are opting for staycations, which is just a polite way of saying “we can’t afford to leave this ZIP code.” The kids still scream, the adults still drink, but now it happens in the backyard.
4. Groceries without the existential dread
Remember when buying food didn’t feel like a financial anxiety simulator? I swear to god, buying food is the only stress I have left — all my earnings are spent on food for me and the cats.
Today, you go to the store for milk and bread and leave $80 poorer with only two bags and a receipt that reads like your eulogy. Eggs have become a luxury item. Beef feels like a financial decision, and cheese is a crime of opportunity.
Shrinkflation is also a fun new trend. Your favorite chips now come in a half-full bag, and cereal boxes contain about six servings — four if you’re sad. Everything is smaller, worse, and somehow more expensive.
The hot dogs that I sometimes buy from the supermarket that’s closest to my home have shrunk to half their original size, but the price stayed the same. Now I have to buy two to feel full. And yes, I know this is a ‘that’s what she said’ moment. I fully own it — it’s okay. The problem is that the only thing growing is your grocery bill. And your blood pressure.
5. Living on one income
There was a time — and I swear this is real — when one parent could work, and the other stayed home to raise the kids. Not anymore. Now, if both parents aren’t working full-time plus a side hustle and maybe renting out the garage on Airbnb, you’re one unexpected car repair away from a GoFundMe.
Even with two incomes, many families still struggle to break even. Rent alone can eat up over half of a paycheck, childcare costs more than college, and commuting to work adds up fast.
We’re not working to thrive — we’re working to afford to keep working. It’s a hamster wheel powered by despair.
6. Higher education without lifelong debt
College used to be a ticket to upward mobility. Now it’s more like a high-interest pyramid scheme. Tuition has ballooned into the financial stratosphere, while wages for graduates have stayed flat. Flatter than a soda left in the sun.
A bachelor’s degree can easily reach six figures, and that doesn’t include books, living expenses, or the emotional toll of discovering your Philosophy degree isn’t in high demand. You were supposed to know that already, but maybe you’re a dreamer, like me.
Student loans used to be manageable. In Europe, they still are. I have two degrees, in two different fields, and the first one cost me nothing. If I were to start a third one today, just because I’m a dreamer, like I just told you, it would cost me $1100 a year if I decided to study Psychology in a public university.
Which is pretty darn good, if you asked me. In the U.S., however, higher education debt has become a lifelong curse. Entire generations are delaying homeownership, marriage, and even having kids because they’re still financially married to their alma mater.
7. Mental health care
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We’ve come a long way in destigmatizing mental health, which, in my humble opinion, is one of the best things we could have done as a society. We don’t need more billionaires in space; we need saner people on Earth. Now, if only we could afford to take care of this very precious mental health.
Therapy is a financial luxury. Even with insurance, co-pays can range from $50 to $200 per session. Weekly therapy is as expensive as a car payment. Medication is only affordable if you’re lucky or maybe European.
I’m European, so yay for me. I’m not on medication, but maybe I should be. Just because it’s cheap, you know? My friend Anna, who is on medication for her severe anxiety, pays so little for her meds that even a frugal European like me was surprised.
Are you ready? Serotonin disruptors for two weeks cost her $4. They are subsidized by the government, obviously, but still: $4? She’s already seeing massive improvement after about two weeks of use.
But what can you do if you’re not European? Or Canadian? Or living anywhere where the government has a different interest than the well-being of its people? What can you do instead? Download mindfulness apps, watch YouTube videos about inner peace, and convince ourselves that journaling and herbal tea will fix our childhood trauma, maybe?
It’s DIY therapy on a budget — and while it helps, it’s no replacement for professional care. But in today’s economy, self-care is often the only care some of us can afford.
So, maybe the middle class isn’t completely gone, but it’s definitely bruised, underpaid, overstretched, and quietly crying in the self-checkout line while scanning store-brand cereal. We’re still here. Hanging on. Laughing through the absurdity. Making memes instead of making ends meet.
Mona Lazar is a writer and unconventional relationship coach with words published in Better Humans, Medium, Illumination, The Soulciety, Newsbreak, The Startup, Hello, Love, The Good Men Project, Curious, and others.
