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I went to school right after high school, but also got a degree later in life so have a little bit of a different eye towards what is going on with the new grad.
Things where so much easier in the past. Compared to today, it was like taking candy from a baby. Don't let all these people fool you into talking about how tough their life was.
When I first went to school
Tuition - Just under $1,000 for the year (not counting summer), I believe it was $968
Minimum wage - $4.25/hr
Entry level wage - $38k/yr and no experience was needed at all, just the degree was good enough and getting multiple offers was normal. Finding a job was a given, no one even questioned it.
My first house - $205k
Today, same school, same exact house
Tuition- $8,523/yr (not counting summer)
Minimum wage - $10/hr
Wage for same position - $45k/yr and you better have a couple internships or else you won't even get a look
Same house - $700k+
Kids these days do not have it easy.
Think about it. In those days there was no such thing as easy money for mortgages, easy money for school. Today they are suffering the consequences of government mingling always in the name of helping the poor. Now no one can afford anything.
Yeah, and don't forget, those Boomers who did go to college worked their way through it without any debt, unlike lazy Millennials (sarc).
Sarcasm aside, there is some truth to the notion that some Millennials have been spoiled/babied by their parents. The term "helicopter parents" didn't exist for my generation (Gen X). There were a few of them, I'm sure, but not as may as there are now.
Nope, I never heard the term helicopter parents back then either. These kids today would think we ran wild. I'm really glad my parents weren't helicopter parents. Back then if we got a boo boo our parents told us we'll live, put a bandage on it and off we went. Today, the parents act as if the worlds coming to an end.
mysticaltyger it's going to get worse. Now helicopter parents are the helicopter parents. My neighbors are helicopter parents. I've said (especially about the youngest kid). If he could crawl back he would, and she would let him.
i grew up in a nyc housing project . helicopter parents were not something i ever knew from . with my mom dying at age 54 i hardly remember the term parent .
Women or minorities were screwed. I've literally looked at the 60s yearbooks at my college library - no blacks or hispanics were among the student body and this was in Texas which had plenty of both. The women they did have almost to a girl were majoring in physical education or home economics. The serious departments were all white male students.
Well I have to admit your right here. When I was young when this commercial came on I'd sing right along with it not understanding what was going on.
I can bring home the bacon,
Fry it up in the pan,
And never, never, never let you forget you're a man,
Because I'm a woooomman, Ajali
Mom fought with dad because she wanted to work, I remember after thanksgiving dinner I went to the living room to rest but got in a lot of trouble because I was supposed to go to the kitchen to clean (as my brothers lounged and was oblivious to the trouble). I over heard my uncle saying she can't go to college, it's a waste of money.
Then I got a big lecture as I began to realize what was going on and made a comment. I think my dad saw I wasn't the type to "fall in line" with the old ways. Of course I had 2 aunts that left the state, we laugh when we look back and call it the great escape (from the old you belong in the kitchen mentality) lol.
He saw the light and did a huge turnaround and said, NEVER! EVER! depend on a man, you get an education, depend on yourself only. I was the only one that went to college in my immediate family, my dad got very sick and could't help pay. The boys weren't interested in going to college. They wanted to spend their money NOW and now they suffer the consequences of their decision.
The point is, yes, women were held back in those days but that's over and nothing was handed to us either. If I would have jumped on the "women were held back" mentality and been angry about it. Only I would be paying the price.
I have had many tenants who had more salary income than I had.
They were not homeowners because they perceived that they did not earn enough to own home.
Same here... I am almost destitute compared to the incomes of some of my tenants... but, they tend to spend a lot... new high end cars, the best vacations/travel, fine dining, the best clothes... and of course the best Landlord
My high school educated parents have a 5BR/3BA house, with attached garage, on a double lot in Michigan (Metro Detroit). I think at the time they bought, it was around $120k. I believe they have taken out some home equity loans since then, so I don't know how much they owe now. My 2BR/2BA condo in Denver cost more than their entire house.
Times are different now. Everything costs more. In many cases, you need an expensive college education to make a decent salary. The only way I see what was proposed in the OP as possible is to have zero debt, live literally in the middle of nowhere, and built a very minimalist homestead to live out of. If you can be content with that lifestyle, then so be it.
People who've never had to go through this just can't seem to wrap their minds around how different it is for younger generations today. It's always been this way, and it will probably continue to be this way down the road, I'm sure.
The are always exceptions... like my friend the paving contractor born and raised in Mexico came here at 17 and now employs 20 in his paving business.
Same for another friend that owns a body shop... didn't even finish high school, was always wrenching on cars and turned it into a career... his little shop with 6 employees has a wait list.
Maybe the difference is these guys actually do the work and have the knowledge and skills to personally do any job that comes there way...
The point is, yes, women were held back in those days but that's over and nothing was handed to us either. If I would have jumped on the "women were held back" mentality and been angry about it. Only I would be paying the price.
Mom was the first in her family... although it wasn't college.
She wanted to be a nurse in the worst way which meant leaving home... her parent forbid it but said when you are 19 your younger sister will be able to help out on the farm and we can no longer tell you what to do...
She became a nurse with zero family support... went to the big city where student nurses lived in dorms and worked without pay for 2 years as part of the exchange...
In her third year she got her first pay as a student nurse and bought a motorcycle... almost unheard of too.
Mom said the only professions available to women when she came of age were cook, seamstress, nurse, teacher...
WWII did wonders for a lot of my parents friends... all of a sudden the women were running things because the men were off to fight...
My husband is on medicare. He pays $480.00 per month for it, including supplement. Is that low cost to you?
Yep. That's very low cost. I'm between jobs at the moment. My COBRA payment is $793.00/month. I think that's a very good deal. I lucked out and the group insurance plan is mostly younger, healthy men. The cost is based on the demographics and risk of the group. If you were paying fully risk-based health insurance at age 65, I'll bet it would be $2K+ per month with a high deductible.
I'm 58. I have $10K/year penciled in for Medicare and supplemental. I worry that I am guessing low. Medicare as it exists today is not sustainable and I kind of have to assume that to get the level of coverage I've come to expect in my life, I'm going to have to pay large dollars for it.
Think about it. In those days there was no such thing as easy money for mortgages, easy money for school. Today they are suffering the consequences of government mingling always in the name of helping the poor. Now no one can afford anything.
I'm a late-Boomer. I don't see that mortgages are particularly different in 2016 than they were in 1985. The first thing I bought was 5% down. Banks would write loans with 10% down back then for people with less than stellar credit. That's comparable to today's FHA rules requiring 10% down for a 500 to 580 credit score. The nutty true easy money for mortgages vanished with the Great Recession. I graduated from college with an inflation-adjusted college debt of $40K. I paid it back over 10 years. What's the big deal? I went to a good school, chose a good major, and got good grades. I didn't borrow that kind of money to get C's and a Sociology degree.
those of you who never owned a home have had the luxury of accumulating vast equity in the stock market through a lifetime of good financial decisions and following a good financial plan and investment policy statement.
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