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If you have twice as many households, each building only 1/2 the wealth and living in a place with 1/2 the square footage, have you really lost anything economically?
I think it's easier/more practical to live cheaper as a two people sharing expenses than two living on their own. If that's generally true then more wealth could be built by those splitting expenses
Birthrates have fluctuated, so I would study the historical impacts if I wanted to get an idea of what to expect.
Could you provide some evidence for your claims? I'm 57, and I haven't seen much, if any increase in the number of single people throughout my life. Furthermore, being single does not necessarily affect the birthrate, and hence, interest in public schools.
Some highlights of the report are:
• Sixty-six percent of households in 2012 were family
households, down from 81 percent in 1970.
• Between 1970 and 2012, the share of households
that were married couples with children under
18 halved from 40 percent to 20 percent.
• The proportion of one-person households increased
by 10 percentage points between 1970 and 2012,
from 17 percent to 27 percent.
• Between 1970 and 2012, the average number of
people per household declined from 3.1 to 2.6.
I think it's easier/more practical to live cheaper as a two people sharing expenses than two living on their own. If that's generally true then more wealth could be built by those splitting expenses
Maybe it just means more resource sharing is needed - roommates, peer to peer car share, etc.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Lowexpectations
The US birthrate has been dropping, teen birthrates hit an all time low last year well all time since they started keep track, birthrates for 20 year olds also dropped. The US rate is now 1.8 or so which is below the replacement rate which means without immigration our population will decline
In areas like ours, there is immigration, with families coming to take high tech jobs, but also immigrants from Seattle who are having kids and want good schools for them. Despite overall lower birth rates and school enrollment, our schools are becoming more overcrowded with several new ones built in the last 10 years, and more coming. Some of these families would be considered "singletons" since there are unmarried couples, some of those same-sex. I would also expect an increase in the birth rates soon as those approaching the mid-late 30s realize that their clock is running low. People who are responsible and plan will want to be settled in with a home and stable job before having kids, and that is taking a lot longer these days than in the past when many of us were at that stage before age 25. There are many children of the baby boomer peak years that are now in their late 20s-early 30s who have not yet started families but will.
The US birthrate has been dropping, teen birthrates hit an all time low last year well all time since they started keep track, birthrates for 20 year olds also dropped. The US rate is now 1.8 or so which is below the replacement rate which means without immigration our population will decline
It's counter intuitive, but the US population, even without immigration, will likely increase for several decades, until us baby boomers have all passed. So the economy will most likely be unaffected in general terms, although certain specific industries will see declines while certain others will see increases. Think funeral homes as opposed to hot sports cars and convertibles.
I think it's easier/more practical to live cheaper as a two people sharing expenses than two living on their own. If that's generally true then more wealth could be built by those splitting expenses
Housing alone usually affords two or more people a cost savings in the neighborhood of 30% or greater; a 2BR (3BR) apartment usually adds only about 20% above the cost of a 1BR (2BR), as the kitchen and bathroom are the most expensive parts of an apartment.
Since housing is usually the elephant in one's net income, that's not a trivial cost reduction.
One site I visited long ago postulated that the Muslim because they don't not practice birth control, would out vote us in 20 years ,this was 5 years ago.
Shira law, is not far away. according to the site.
A nation of singletons basically means our birthrate now will have a recessed economy in 20-25 years. (See: Japan) At the rate things are going, the entire first world will probably be in recession for the next 30 years or so. Inflation of 2% is proving difficult for the developed countries.
(Hint: the biggest contributor to inflation is the demand-pull type, which is dictated by demographics.)
China is not yet recessed and has had a 1 child policy since 1979 (35 years.) What i see about Japan similar to us is that we are both "throw away" cultures- (ie, must have latest and greatest stuff, high consumerism, landfills overflowing.)
Quote:
Originally Posted by freemkt
I think falling incomes will squeeze more and more Americans into reducing their housing space per person. Many houses are occupied by one or two people (e.g. empty nester homeowners) but I foresee an increase in the number of houses occupied by 3-4-5 or more people. The one-person house will become decreasingly sustainable for Americans as incomes fall.
I wonder how/if this can be achieved when there are less family members. Who will a singleton live with? Roommates from Craiglist?
Quote:
Originally Posted by arleigh
One site I visited long ago postulated that the Muslim because they don't not practice birth control, would out vote us in 20 years ,this was 5 years ago.
Shira law, is not far away. according to the site.
A lot of Catholics use birth control, however, if/when, it fails, they are more reluctant to have a fetus aborted. (i.e., more Hispanic babies as the Hispanic population increases.)
China is not yet recessed and has had a 1 child policy since 1979 (35 years.) What i see about Japan similar to us is that we are both "throw away" cultures- (ie, must have latest and greatest stuff, high consumerism, landfills overflowing.)
I wonder how/if this can be achieved when there are less family members. Who will a singleton live with? Roommates from Craiglist?
A lot of Catholics use birth control, however, if/when, it fails, they are more reluctant to have a fetus aborted. (i.e., more Hispanic babies as the Hispanic population increases.)
Interesting forbes article on China's one child policy or the end there of
China is not yet recessed and has had a 1 child policy since 1979 (35 years.) What i see about Japan similar to us is that we are both "throw away" cultures- (ie, must have latest and greatest stuff, high consumerism, landfills overflowing.)
I wonder how/if this can be achieved when there are less family members. Who will a singleton live with? Roommates from Craiglist?
A lot of Catholics use birth control, however, if/when, it fails, they are more reluctant to have a fetus aborted. (i.e., more Hispanic babies as the Hispanic population increases.)
A lot of low income singles already do this out of necessity; the old rooming houses and "SRO" housing are virtually nonexistent today due to regulation, obsolescence, and conversion to more profitable uses.
Living alone is prohibitively expensive today for low income singles in many parts of the country
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