In some ways I think the poorer you are, the more apparent it will tend be that you buy unnecessarily expensive things. This is because a lot of people want to show off how wealthy and successful they are to those in their peer groups of similar status, and buy (what they perceive to be). expensive things that will get them noticed for it.
If someone for example buys lots of conspicuous designer clothes to catch their peers' attention, it probably means that they come from a social circle of relatively low wealth, of people who consider designer clothes to be items that are normally a stretch to afford. Someone from a background of higher wealth might not feel the need to do this, as in their social circle, having designer clothes seems like no big deal because anyone can afford them. Instead they might need to buy an expensive luxury car to achieve the same effect, something that the person from the poorer background wouldn't have even be able to dream of doing as the price tag is totally out of reach.
The poorer you are, the more your status symbols will come in the form of cheaper, everyday objects such as clothes and accessories (e.g. sportswear or designer brands) or portable technology (e.g. Apple products, Beats headphones).
Those of a medium income would probably do the same thing with larger, more expensive purchases such as cars (sports or luxury brand), or a residence (such as a large suburban house and its internal decor). But these things will be a little less visible to the majority of people they come across over their lives.
As you go further up the ladder there are people of celebrity or royal status doing the same thing with private jets, yachts and island resorts (which the average person they come across is even less likely to see), and the effect continues the higher up you go with larger, more expensive, less publicly visible items.
Every now and again, you get people who aren't really interested in such petty matters, either because they have always had so much money (and everyone knows it anyway), to the point that It has little value and showing it off means very little to them, or because they've found their life purpose and status in something else (e.g. some kind of religion or monasticism).