Show HN: The bottom 50% of U.S. households are short after essentials (BLS data)
Summary
This article presents an interactive 'Household Surplus Lab' built on BLS data (2000–2024, with 2025–2026 projections) to model how much households have left after essential expenses and how that surplus could grow if invested. Users can adjust income definitions, essential costs, childcare, taxes, benefits, and investment assumptions to see scenario-based outcomes across income groups and visualize where wealth sits. The piece highlights the persistence of near-zero or negative post-essentials surpluses for lower-income groups and provides methodology, limitations, and sources.