Before this question can be answered, we have to understand exactly what the world of Transmetropolitan is like. Technology, of course, has made some huge leaps. Strangely though, the leaps seem to be in very specific directions. For instance, cars don't seem to have changed much at all. A maker is a machine which effectively rearanges matter.
Makers seem to be widely available to all but the lowest class.
Base blocks, however, are expensive and are found only in upper class homes. There is a quote in one of the comics about middle class families sneaking around in lower class neighbourhoods stealing the garbage. It's an interesting reversal from the modern. The other direction which technology really seems to have expanded is drugs and biotechnology. Drugs on the other hand are available in all forms, causing all sorts of effects.