The Two-Income Trap: Why Middle-Class Parents are Going Broke

I believe one insightful portion of the dedication to this book sums up its thesis best: "..dedicated to all parents who wake up with hearts thudding over the possibility that buying school shoes and Girl Scout uniforms will mean that there won't be enough left over to pay the mortgage... They travel anonymously among us, but we know them. They went to college, had kids, bought a home, played by the rules- and lost." This is not the first time that Elizabeth Warren has sounded the alarm about stable, hard-working people going under in droves. Indeed, the contents of this book are actually a graphic, terrifying distillation of two previous books written by Prof. Warren (in collaboration with Teresa Sullivan and Jay Lawrence Westbrook) chronicling the rapidly evolving disaster of consumer bankruptcy in America. The first book, As We Forgive Our Debtors, was an outgrowth of the US Consumer Bankruptcy Project, and looked at all of the key players in consumer bankruptcy, focusing in particular on bankrupt debtors and their creditors; it was very academic in nature, which may have explained its tepid reception in the marketplace (however, I suspect the very incendiary comments and conclusions all throughout the book rankled quite a few feathers in the banking industry, and may well be the real reason the text was conspicuously ignored). The second book, The Fragile Middle Class, focused exclusively on bankrupt debtors, and looked closely at the fallout associated with consumer bankruptcy for several reference groups; it was less academic and more activist in tone, and actually preceded The Two Income Trap in sounding the alarm about US consumer bankruptcy. The Two-Income Trap also sounds the alarm, and zeroes in on the reference group everyone would readily say is most likely NOT to go bankrupt: two-income, solidly middle-class mothers and fathers with kids and a home in the burbs. This book, much like the ones before it, dispells the prevailing myths that the bankrupt are ignorant, low-income deadbeats, unrepentant spendthrifts who take advantage of a far-too-lenient system with giddy glee, and have no control over their impulses. Instead, each book has demonstrated that the bankrupt have to have a fairly high degree of financial savvy to even consider bankruptcy, that the majority of the bankrupt are solidly middle class, that most got in over their head in a situation far beyond their control, and all are profoundly embarassed by their bankruptcy, which all of them see not only as a financial failure, but also a personal one, as well. Yet, it is also clear to me that the spirit of activism, which was subdued in As We Forgive Our Debtors and quite forceful in The Fragile Middle Class, is not only alive and well in this book, but also very loud, and very clear; indeed, the activist tenor is quite torrential in this narrative. The authors, both women, clearly have written a book to discuss the plight of a particular reference group: middle class women, be they married, single or divorced, with children. This reference group has quickly become the single biggest cohort represented in the bankruptcy rolls. In the book, the authors go so far as to imply that women's liberation has resulted in more than a few of their sisters ending up in the poorhouse. Having previously read Lionel Tiger's The Decline of Males, and Warren Farrell's insightful books, Why Men Are The Way They Are and The Myth of Male Power, I found the contents of this book (and the authors' aforementioned implication) most interesting. I submit that equality of the sexes has finally been achieved, albeit in a most peculiar and unorthodox way- via financial insecurity, as nowadays it apparently knows no gender difference. Though my intention is to be partially humorous, I realize that more than a few will take offense at such a comment, but my main thrust is this: what we see before us is all part of a larger plan to reinstate the New And Improved Feudalism upon the masses. Call me crazy if you like, but before you pass judgment, I strongly suggest that the intelligent, thinking individual read Robert Manning's Credit Card Nation for more insight into my claim. For many, the pursuit of the American Dream (which many would say was a cute little myth in any event) has devolved from an honest chance at a guaranteed title shot, to little more than a gamble with one's finances resembling Russian Roullette with an interesting twist: instead of one chamber holding a live round, five chambers have live rounds. Lose a job, miss a payment, and you can kiss your house and your middle class existence goodbye. Frankly, this game's too rich for my blood, and I think I will pass...

If you are struggling in this economy like I am, then this is a must read. This books tells the stories of middle-class Americans living the American dream and how fast it can all unravel, ending in bankruptcy. It debunks the over-consumption myth and explains the most common reasons for bankruptcy in America: job loss, medical bills, divorce. Take heart stay-at-home parents, you are the Safety Net for your families and you were lucky enough not to get caught in the Two-Parent Income Trap. You are ahead of the game. But beware america, between Washington and Wall Street, we are being set-up to fail and sadly our children are too. The book describes bidding wars for homes located in neighborhoods with the best public school systems. Parents then burden themselves with large mortgages, in hopes of a better education for their children, and become stuck on the never-ending-hamster- wheel of debt. This book offers simple, easy to implement suggestions on how you can escape The Two-parent Income Trap. It is well written and never dull. They should make economics mandatory in every high school and this book should be required reading. Kudos to Elizabeth Warren and her daughter, Amelia Warren Tyagi, for writing such a fascinating defense of the American people.

This study provides an insightful and well-reasoned analysis of the problems facing middle class families. I intend to use it in my next Sociology course because the younger students need a perspective on how to survive in the contemporary economy. Also it is an excellent example of how to link problems at the level of individual families to public policy. As far as analysis, she is too quick to dismiss Juliet Shor who does a better job of economic analysis. Moreover, she clearly ignores central findings in the sociology of education which link school performance to the family background of students rather than the quality of the school. Indeed most of the families seeking out the "best" districts equate that with the class level of the families in that district. Their children might do far better in a "blue collar" district with supportive community institutions. Are they looking to raise their status and rationalizing it as meeting the needs of the children? More on target is her critique of credit practices. I was totally unaware of the legal changes that have occurred and that insight made the entire book worthwhile. Those criticizing families and individuals who accumulate large debts clearly favor the legalization of drugs. After all, if responding to such "temptations" is entirely one's own fault, does that not also apply to drug addiction. And if the kids suffer then it is the fault of the parents. And then let us pass a law that ensures the family will never be able to recover. What we really need is a new "bankruptcy" law that allows the debtor to walk in and terminate all obligations in which their payments equal the original amount borrowed. This will quickly end all usurious practices. If we really support family values, we should support family institutions just as was done during the era of the "Greatest Generation."

This book is interesting, well-written (in a newsy sort of way), and informative. It's also probably correct in several ideas that the author espouses. Kindle Notes: OCR on this book leaves something to be desired. There are missing spaces between words, and spaces/hyphens inserted in the middle of words for no apparent reason. It's not to the point that it makes it truly difficult to read, but it is bad enough that it's significantly distracting. Formatting is a major issue. This book is a scholarly work, with an anntotated bibliography - however, the publishers didn't see fit to make the footnotes clickable. This severely compromises the usefulness of this ebook as compared to a paper version. Writing/Story/Information: ***** Formatting: * OCR: **

I have read this book at different points in my life, and I have to say that my understanding and take away points are vastly different each time I've read it-- First assigned to me as a budding college student, the ideas presented here were easily understandable, but seemed a bit abstract and inapplicable. I was single and very professionally ambitious. My family is considered middle class, and when looking at ways to best manage our incomes as a family unit, I remembered this book and made my husband read it. As a wife and new mother, the ideas presented here took on a new weight. I love very much how this book is laid out to compare and contrast generational ideas on 2 income households. With my life very drastically changing recently to include a child, I never thought I'd want to be a stay at home mom-- Just the opposite, in fact. My family had never planned on moving to 1 income, and what that might entail. As a proud professional woman, I have to say that I really respected the ideas put forth here, and found Elizabeth Warren's ideas inspiring-- and heeded the warnings outlined here as we plan for our own future. My family is new and has a ways to go, but my husband and I really enjoyed discussing this book, and how we might agree to internalize some ideas and which we wanted to revisit once we get into a better place financially.

A great gift to a son or daughter considering marriage or newly weds. Well written and and data that supports the authors' opinions. Their follow up book is also a must. My take: don't try to start off too high on the latter in the early years of marriage and wait a couple of years before starting your family. Sacrifice/save early when it is easier to do so. I have liked Elizabeth Warren for a couple of years. These books written with her daughter are very practical for young people about to get married. Don't read the lifeboat manual after the boat has started to sink

The premise is good. Starts out fine, and then it becomes out dated. I would have preferred to borrow from library, did not have it.

The Warrens have accomplished a tremendous public service in the writing of this book. While I whole-heatedly agree that the pursuit of a good school district has forced working families to make the financial decisions that lead many to place themselves in precarious positions, I feel they are slightly off by not acknowledging the tremendous bite taxes are taking on working families. Every decade or so, Congress "simplifies" the tax code which effectively sticks it to the tax base - the working families featured in this book. The logic is perfectly illustrated by the Warrens themselves in the first couple of chapters where they describe the discretionary money of a 1-income family from the 1970's is actually greater than a 2-income family had in the 2000's. They point out that it is the increased fixed costs that has left families with less money even when there is a second bread-winner. Well, the largest fixed cost is not the mortgage, it's taxes! And logically so with a second bread-winner. More income means more taxes. I hope the Warrens take a closer look at the role of taxes in the two-income trap and follow up this excellent book with one that more closely addresses the issue of taxation on the middle class. In the meantime, all you two-income trapped families, should explore ways to lower your tax bite. Try books by Sandy Botkin or Alan M Williams (Money Mastery). Lowering your taxes now and immediately will have a much greater and more practical impact on working families than trying to legislate school voucher programs or overhaul the educational system. Although we should stay the course to do just that.

Un libro molto importante scritto da una possibile futura candidata alla presidenza del S.U, scritto quando era "solo" una docente universitaria, quindi interessante da leggere.

I bought this after reading All You Are Worth. This is far more academic and although Warren has strong arguments I found the book did not really deliver solutions . Well researched and good background references.