I think that most people in the lower 50% wage bracket do not have a mortgage. People in the lowest 20% don't even have a credit card, probably. The answer is

I think that most people in the lower 50% wage bracket do not have a mortgage. People in the lowest 20% don't even have a credit card, probably. The answer is still likely: Debt. When we take out sovereign debt it increases cost of living, and usually the way that sovereigns typically use that debt is via payouts to contractors, which does not go to the bottom 50%, except perversely via trickle-down effects. If you look at the "socialist" countries that have low poverty rates, typically they also have low rates of sovereign borrowing (think Norway, Sweden, and Denmark).