meazza Posted February 23, 2014 Share Posted February 23, 2014 Is it really or are our expectations of what is minimally acceptable significantly higher? Now people expect more square footage and better finish out. Additionally, they are less prone to maintain it themselves. My parents were able to buy a revenue property with a combined minimum wage (albeit 7 days a week). Nowadays, i can't possibly afford that kind of property even if i downgraded my lifestyle. Best i could afford now is a 1000 sq foot condo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dean Cain Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 In my home planet of Krypton everyone is a god. No need for work when you can create anything you want. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deranged Rhino Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 My parents worked 7 days a week while supporting 4 children. They never took a vacation and didn't know the word "luxury". I on the other hand work 35 hour weeks and am paid overtime if I do more with 4-5 weeks vacation a year in which I travel. Even if I keep my current job, I'll still have earned significantly more than they have ever dreamed of earning. Yes there are some sectors that are not doing well but overall, I never had to go through the same **** they had to. The only difference is buying a house is much more difficult now than it was in their time. I'm not trying to say you're wrong, it's just you're looking at it from a very narrow perspective. In the case of your parents and you, you are absolutely correct. In a more global sense, I think it's the same sentiment that older generations have had since time began. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koko78 Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 In my home planet of Krypton everyone is a god. No need for work when you can create anything you want. Yeah, and how'd that work out for your people? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffaloBill Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 My parents were able to buy a revenue property with a combined minimum wage (albeit 7 days a week). Nowadays, i can't possibly afford that kind of property even if i downgraded my lifestyle. Best i could afford now is a 1000 sq foot condo. Do you live in the same metropolitan area as your parents? I am about to buy a house in CT (NYC commuting distance) that is essentially the same as my parents retirement house in small town VA for 5X the cost. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ExiledInIllinois Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 Do you live in the same metropolitan area as your parents? I am about to buy a house in CT (NYC commuting distance) that is essentially the same as my parents retirement house in small town VA for 5X the cost. My parents bought their first (and only) house new in the early 1960's for $14,000. Guess what, my father still lives in it today @ almost 80 years old. I am still living in the same house we built 20 years ago. In 1994, it cost 10x what my parents paid for their house. Like Fergy said, this topic/thread is pure gold... Don't even get me started. And, that doesn't mean I will take sides w/the millenials, which I won't. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meazza Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 Do you live in the same metropolitan area as your parents? I am about to buy a house in CT (NYC commuting distance) that is essentially the same as my parents retirement house in small town VA for 5X the cost. Not exactly but the price of a house in Montreal has become unaffordable. A bungalow in their time cost about 150K and now goes for about 400K. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ExiledInIllinois Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 Not exactly but the price of a house in Montreal has become unaffordable. A bungalow in their time cost about 150K and now goes for about 400K. Maybe rightly so, everybody wants to make money and grab a piece of the pie. People aren't living in their same old houses like my old man is. 30 years and "roots" in a community is a thing of the past. About your story... And even if it was affordable, why would one want to pay... Well, I guess one would have to if they want to be in that location. Heck, a person of means can go out tomorrow and pay cash on house a stone's throw from Chicago. And that ain't 50k or less fixer upper in some crappy neighborhood. Chicago is in Montreal's playgorund city wise? Maybe not as much. Blame gentrification? I understand that game is bigger, faster... But is it better? When does the contraction in the market hit? The higher up the tree, the harder the fall? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffaloBill Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 Not exactly but the price of a house in Montreal has become unaffordable. A bungalow in their time cost about 150K and now goes for about 400K. Hard to say without dates to look back but wages have gone up considerably also. I don't disagree that housing is more expensive the issue comes down to how much so on a relative basis. Also adding to the confusion is that today we pay for things that used to be free or at least lower cost. The simplest example is cable TV. We also now expect things like cell phones (I can remember when my parents had a party line land based phone) and automobiles that are far more technologically advanced. In my own home it is amazing to think about the things I expect are "normal" or to be expected vs. what I grew up with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chef Jim Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 In my own home it is amazing to think about the things I expect are "normal" or to be expected vs. what I grew up with. In your home? Hell your pocket. I was listening to an IT blogger being interviewed. He found a Radio Shack full page ad from 1991 (I think) with 19 items on it all of which are now available on your phone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ExiledInIllinois Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 Hard to say without dates to look back but wages have gone up considerably also. I don't disagree that housing is more expensive the issue comes down to how much so on a relative basis. Also adding to the confusion is that today we pay for things that used to be free or at least lower cost. The simplest example is cable TV. We also now expect things like cell phones (I can remember when my parents had a party line land based phone) and automobiles that are far more technologically advanced. In my own home it is amazing to think about the things I expect are "normal" or to be expected vs. what I grew up with. So true. Wages have gone up but not in line with what people are spending extra on than in the past... What they THINK they need. So many more frivilous choices tugging @ people. Of course it takes greater will power to avoid all the choices and their pitfalls. Some people lose miserably by not spending wisely. I am not big about getting on the millenial pity party. I do see how they may have a harder time throttling back and having to live a lesser lifestyle than how they were raised. No matter how much one says they can handle it, it is a bitter pill to swallow. In your home? Hell your pocket. I was listening to an IT blogger being interviewed. He found a Radio Shack full page ad from 1991 (I think) with 19 items on it all of which are now available on your phone. Interesting, I would like to see that ad. Four phone lines cost what now? I think Cricket is coming in cheap @ 100 bucks a month. The big carriers... 200-300 bucks a month! :-O Be better buying all that crap once from Radio Shack and being done with it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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