Even 8k is really not "middle class" at all. Middle class is "I have 6 months to a year of income saved up in case of emergencies" and that isn't your 401k.
Of course, if you have enough assets, you can derive reliable investment income from those assets, but $8K of assets will not reliably generate enough income to matter when considering what class the person is.
In other words, if you have $8K in assets, but zero potential to earn income from your labor, you definitely do not meet the bar for being middle class.
This doesn't make much sense to me. So a retired wealthy person who can draw income from investments is not upper class, even if they draw an income that would be considered middle class or lower?
Lower class: Has little or no savings, probably works a "gig" job that pays on 1099s. Maybe has several part time jobs.
Middle class: Has 3-6+ months savings, the vast majority of their income is reported on a single W2 or 1099. Or they own a sole proprietorship kind of business. Either way, the majority of their income is coming from work or services. Net worth: Probably under $5M.
Upper class: The vast majority of their income is reported as capital gains. Owns multiple real estate properties. Net worth: 5-$500M.
Elite Upper class: I don't even know what to describe this as
Basically, it seems to me that an $8K limit on assets could effectively mean that people on disability are not allowed to have a life.