Quote:
Originally Posted by LouisVanDerWright
B. Chicago's middle class population is not rising, it is falling.
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This is an interesting problem... the data showing a loss of middle-class people is based on per-capita income, not household income. I.E. many young professionals are "rich" by this metric until they have kids, at which point they drop into the "middle class". This is also the time at which many families choose to move to the suburbs, purely for access to better, free public school systems (which only seem "free" until you look at property tax bills, but at least they accept all students).
This is not to deny that having kids can strain your budget (it absolutely can) but to point out that "middle class" is a really really hazy concept that shifts around depending on who is talking. A different metric might show middle-class households growing in many parts of the city, and not just the glitzy North Side neighborhoods you'd expect. There are probably several Latino or Asian neighborhoods showing an increase of middle-class households. Plenty of neighborhoods on the far NW and SW sides transitioning from old white ethnic folks to Latino.