This New Survey Sparked the Most Connecticut Conversation Imaginable

According to 72 Point, a new survey asked Americans what they consider the biggest modern-day status symbols, and honestly, the answers sound like somebody walked into a wealthy Connecticut suburb and started taking notes.

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The list includes things like high-end watches, luxury handbags, the newest iPhone, designer shoes and walk-in closets. There’s also at-home saunas, backyard outdoor kitchens, hot tubs, plunge pools and electric vehicles. Basically, if you’ve ever driven through parts of Fairfield County and seen a backyard that looks like a boutique resort, this survey probably feels very familiar.

But the most Connecticut thing about this entire list might actually be what’s missing from it.

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Because people here don’t always flex wealth in the obvious “look at my Lamborghini” kind of way. Connecticut has perfected the art of the subtle rich-person brag. Around here, the real status symbol is casually mentioning you “know a guy” for literally everything. Or having a second refrigerator in the garage specifically for drinks from Costco. Or acting like owning a pizza oven somehow makes you an artisan chef now.

And yes, outdoor pizza ovens actually made the survey’s Top 20 list.

That might honestly be the most Connecticut detail imaginable. Somewhere in this state there’s absolutely a guy wearing a quarter-zip sweater explaining hydration levels in homemade dough while standing next to a $4,000 pizza oven he uses twice a year.

The survey also found that high-end wine fridges, home bars, fancy exercise bikes, robot vacuums and modern art are considered status symbols now too. Although in Connecticut, “modern art” sometimes just means a giant abstract painting hanging in a house where nobody is allowed to sit on the furniture.

What’s funny is Connecticut has this weird mix of old-money and aggressively practical energy. You’ll have one person showing off a luxury handbag while another person proudly gives you a tour of the freezer in their garage because they “got a great deal on steaks.”

Honestly, that second person feels way more Connecticut.

The survey also found that a lot of people care less about status symbols as they get older, although plenty admitted they’ve bought things specifically to impress others.