I was scrolling through Instagram a week ago and came across a stay-at-home mother with two kids and a husband. She created an account on Instagram to document what she cooks for her family on a low-income budget. Most of the comments were encouraging and polite. Others, not so much. One common comment that was often nasty was from people claiming she wasn’t low-income because she was using ingredients in her meals like Tillamook cheese. That she had cast iron. She had some appliances.
Some argued they were low-income before and that is how they know she isn’t because no one low-income has appliances or uses Tillamook cheese. Another complaint was that she never seasons her food. Which is true. She doesn’t. But that is because she has two picky toddlers who refuse to eat heavily seasoned food. People love to comment without understanding the context or history of the creator.
With that said, this is what most people and the media have wrong about being low-income, and that is low-income people are destitute, poor, and can’t afford anything, let alone the basics.
This is further from the truth. What some people and the media forget to keep in mind is that low-income status for a family of four is different than a family of two. An income for a family of four could be a middle-class income for my household of two.
“According to HHS’s measurement, a family of four in 2023 would be considered impoverished if their income is $30,000 or lower. Alaska and Hawaii use a slightly different measure due to a higher cost of living in those states. The poverty guideline is $37,500 in Alaska and $34,500 in Hawaii.
Comparatively, the 2023 median household income for a family of four is $98,487.”
Source: https://usafacts.org/articles/what-does-living-at-the-poverty-line-look-like
Chances are her small family is low income or just above the poverty line, even though she uses Tillamook cheese. It sounds like people are forgetting that coupons and sales are a thing in the world. I buy Tillamook shredded cheese when there is a good sale. For example, my local grocery store often sells their brand of shredded cheese for 2 for $5.00, and sometimes the Tillamook cheese is on sale for the same. You can bet I am going to pick up the Tillamook brand when the sale is just the same.
Also, to refute the claim that low-income people don’t have some decent kitchen appliances, I will tell you that I own an Instant Pot that I saved up for all year long. I wear both Adidas and Nike apparel. I got all my Adidas sweatpants from Value Village, a thrift store, and my Nike shirts were given to me for free by a neighbor who could no longer fit them. I own one pair of shoes—Nike running shoes. I spent $100 on them, and they last over a year. If you recall, I have written about my frugality with Nike shoes in the past.
Just like you can’t tell if someone is rich by the car they are driving or the watch they wear, you can’t tell if someone is low income by the clothes or kitchen appliances they own. Understand that there are people in both income groups on the extreme ends who mismanage their money. You also have people on both ends who deliberately mislead others about their financial situation. I know someone who is low income and buys designer bags and dresses very well to signal to other people she has it. I know of people who buy used BMWs and drive them until they break down and then can’t afford the repairs.
One of my favorite quality YouTubers owns a Rolex, but he saved up for it working construction with his dad. However, he isn’t rich and doesn’t own a car, but he does dream of being wealthy at some point in his life. People who don’t know his story might assume that he is wealthy already just by the watch he wears on his wrist. You cannot go off based on what someone owns.
Understand that being low-income doesn’t mean huddling over a trash can fire trying to keep your hands warm in the winter. It doesn’t always mean beans and rice for dinner with government cheese. It doesn’t mean you can’t afford to save $5 here and there. It doesn’t mean you can’t save $50 a month for investments.
Yes, there are times when those beans and rice meals will make up the bulk of your diet, but there are also times when you’ll be eating something good like a Chinese takeout meal once in a while, a blue moon, which doesn’t suddenly make you middle class or part of the 1%.
Keep in mind that $30,000 for a family of four can feel like $20,000 for them, while it can feel like $25,000 for a family of two or a single person depending on personal living costs. (Hence the word personal in personal finance.)
With that said, the best you can do is don’t jump to conclusions.
The Broke College Student 
Leave a comment