One Off of Well Off

A recent article says that the median household income in the US in 2008 was about 52k. However, it showed comparative incomes in various cities from 2010 and 52k doesn't cut it. In some it comes close, but in most of the big ones from Chicago to San Francisco to New York it is grossly inadequate. 52 THOUSAND dollars a year is FAR BELOW medium income in those places! 52 THOUSAND... I can't even wrap my head around that. I know I'm old, but when I was growing up, if you made 52k a year you were not just well-off, you were downright rich. I wouldn't expect that to be "rich" level now, but it sure seems like it should still be well-off.