The decline of Spain's middle class: myth or reality?
Spain's middle class is shrinking: stagnant wages, unaffordable housing and a sarcasm that masks the harsh economic reality.
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
Spain's middle class is fading away: why are some people celebrating?
Is there really anything left of that old Spain of the Rodríguezes and Pérezes with a mortgage, two cars and holidays in Benidorm? The data — such as it is — suggests that the middle segment of the population has been shrinking since the 2008 financial crisis. But the debate is less about whether it exists than about whether its disappearance is, as the headline puts it, "fortunate".
Some argue that the contraction of the middle class is the logical consequence of an economy that has polarised income. Wages have not regained their purchasing power, housing has become more expensive and families' financial cushion has been eroded. Downward social mobility is a fact.
On the opposite side, some claim that the disappearance of the "aspirational middle class" — that group that felt secure in its position — is a good thing because it exposes the cracks in the system. The irony does not hide the unease: if we are all poor, the rich no longer have anyone to look up to them.
The reality, in the absence of a census of surnames, is that the middle class still exists, but it is more fragile, more indebted and with fewer certainties. That anyone should celebrate it is perhaps the most worrying symptom.
Is there really anything left of that old Spain of the Rodríguezes and Pérezes with a mortgage, two cars and holidays in Benidorm? The data — such as it is — suggests that the middle segment of the population has been shrinking since the 2008 financial crisis. But the debate is less about whether it exists than about whether its disappearance is, as the headline puts it, "fortunate".
Some argue that the contraction of the middle class is the logical consequence of an economy that has polarised income. Wages have not regained their purchasing power, housing has become more expensive and families' financial cushion has been eroded. Downward social mobility is a fact.
On the opposite side, some claim that the disappearance of the "aspirational middle class" — that group that felt secure in its position — is a good thing because it exposes the cracks in the system. The irony does not hide the unease: if we are all poor, the rich no longer have anyone to look up to them.
The reality, in the absence of a census of surnames, is that the middle class still exists, but it is more fragile, more indebted and with fewer certainties. That anyone should celebrate it is perhaps the most worrying symptom.
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (26 replies).
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