Zohran Mamdani Can’t Say If $250,000 Earners Are Working Class — ‘I Haven’t Sat at Home and Asked Myself Where It Starts and Stops’

Zohran Mamdani Can’t Say If $250,000 Earners Are Working Class — ‘I Haven’t Sat at Home and Asked Myself Where It Starts and Stops’

Jeannine Mancini

Thu, July 30, 2026 at 4:00 AM GMT+3 6 min read

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Ask 10 people what "working class" means and there's a good chance you'll hear 10 different answers. Some picture construction workers or factory employees. Others think it's anyone living paycheck to paycheck. But when the question was put directly to New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, his answer wasn't tied to a specific income at all.

"I think if you have to work to pay your bills, I think that that is one definition of being a part of the working class," Mamdani said during an interview with New York Times in July.

His remarks came as journalist Lulu Garcia-Navarro pressed the democratic socialist mayor on one of the central themes of his political message: who, exactly, qualifies as "working class?"

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Where Does Working Class End?

Garcia-Navarro tested Mamdani's definition with a straightforward question.

"So someone making $250,000 a year is working class?" she asked.

"I haven't sat at home and asked myself where it starts and stops," Mamdani replied. "What I would say is those who are working to try and afford the basic dignities of life and aren't able to do so, I think that that is also working class."

He added that, "Oftentimes we're asked how we divide this country. I think there's only one majority in this country — it's the working class."

When pressed again about whether there should be an upper limit, Mamdani suggested the line would be "about a million dollars a year."

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The Definition Depends on Who You Ask

That's because there isn't a single official definition of "working class."

Economists, labor researchers and political scientists have debated the term for decades. Some define it by occupation, focusing on blue-collar and service workers. Others define it by education, often referring to workers without a bachelor's degree. Progressive political movements frequently use a broader definition that includes anyone who relies primarily on wages rather than accumulated wealth to pay everyday expenses.

Mamdani's answer leaned toward that broader interpretation. Instead of drawing a hard income line, he focused on whether someone still has to work to cover the cost of living.

That distinction raises a different question altogether: if working for a paycheck makes someone working class, what happens when money begins generating income on its own?

When Money Starts Working

For many Americans, building wealth isn't just about earning a bigger paycheck. It's about reaching a point where investments begin producing income alongside—or eventually instead of—earned wages.

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That can happen through traditional investments like stocks, bonds and real estate. Increasingly, some investors are also looking at early-stage private companies through Regulation A+ offerings, which have opened startup investing to everyday investors.

Mode Mobile, the company behind the EarnPhone, is one example. The company has allowed retail investors to buy equity before any potential public listing. Others, including Miso Robotics, are developing AI-powered technology like the Flippy Fry Station for commercial kitchens.

Like any startup investment, these opportunities carry significant risk and aren't appropriate for every portfolio. But they represent another path for investors interested in backing companies they believe could grow over time.

Mamdani never tried to settle the decades-old debate over who belongs in the working class. But his answer highlighted a distinction that reaches far beyond politics. For many households, the long-term goal isn't simply earning more from work. It's building enough wealth that work eventually becomes a choice rather than a necessity.

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Building Wealth Across More Than Just the Market

Building a resilient portfolio means thinking beyond a single asset or market trend. Economic cycles shift, sectors rise and fall, and no one investment performs well in every environment. That's why many investors look to diversify with platforms that provide access to real estate, fixed-income opportunities, precious metals, and even self-directed retirement accounts. By spreading exposure across multiple asset classes, it becomes easier to manage risk, capture steady returns, and create long-term wealth that isn't tied to the fortunes of just one company or industry.

Arrived

Backed by Jeff Bezos, Arrived Homes makes real estate investing accessible with a low barrier to entry. Investors canbuy fractional shares of single-family rentals and vacation homes starting with as little as $100. This allows everyday investors to diversify into real estate, collect rental income, and build long-term wealth without needing to manage properties directly.

Realberry

Institutional-quality real estate has traditionally been difficult for individual investors to access.Realberry gives accredited investors direct access to private real estate opportunities backed by a team with 35 years of experience, $3.4 billion in assets under management, and $481 million in cumulative distributions paid to investors as of Q4 2025, according to the company. With a portfolio spanning 13 million square feet across seven U.S. states, Realberry focuses on acquiring, developing, and managing real estate with an emphasis on long-term value creation while its principals often invest alongside clients to help align interests.

FarmTogether

Farmland has historically held its value through market volatility and delivered returns uncorrelated to stocks and bonds. For accredited investors,FarmTogether offers direct access to high-quality U.S. farmland starting at $15,000 — fully managed, with no landlord headaches.

Immersed

Immersed is building technology for the future of work through spatial computing. Known for its AR/VR productivity platform that enables users to work across multiple virtual screens, the company has grown to more than 1.5 million users worldwide. Immersed is also developing Visor, a lightweight headset designed specifically for professional productivity, positioning the company at the intersection of remote work, extended reality (XR), and next-generation computing.

Fundrise

Private real estate and private credit can add income and stability to a stock-heavy portfolio.Fundrise offers access to diversified private real estate and credit strategies through an easy-to-use platform, with professionally managed portfolios designed to generate passive income and long-term growth.

Mode Mobile

Mode Mobile is changing the way people interact with their phones by letting users earn money from the same apps and activities they already use every day. Instead of platforms keeping all the advertising revenue, Mode Mobile shares a portion back with users who engage with content, play games, and scroll on their devices. Named one of Deloitte's fastest-growing software companies in North America, the company has built a large beta user base and is scaling a model that turns everyday smartphone usage into a potential income stream.

EquityMultiple

For accredited investors looking beyond stocks and bonds, EquityMultiple provides access to vetted commercial real estate deals starting at $5,000, with only ~5% of opportunities passing their due diligence process.

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This article Zohran Mamdani Can't Say If $250,000 Earners Are Working Class — 'I Haven't Sat at Home and Asked Myself Where It Starts and Stops' originally appeared on Benzinga.com

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