Rising costs make traditional milestones like homes, kids, and cars harder for middle-income families to reach. Geography now defines middle-class life as much as income does. Shrinking middle class ...

America's middle class is not just feeling squeezed, it is objectively shrinking and losing ground in the national economy.

Defining yourself within the American middle classes can be tricky. Your social class is based on more than just your salary; it depends on everything from where you live to how you live. In the U.S., ...