Same here. My parents purchased our house for $58k in 1975. It was a rather medium sized 4 bedroom split level in an ok neighborhood. Their mortgage was a tiny bit higher than $650.

In 2006 they sold that house for over half a million. Sorry to say, but wages have not increased 10 times since 1975. More like about 3 times. $58k today won't even buy a trailer home around here. The cheapest one bedroom condos are over $250k.

What is your argument here? Don't live in the same neighborhood then!!! That is part of the sacrifice. You insist on making excuses for people, I guess that is how you live with Utopian ideals. Facts are fact, you CAN live on 40K a year, most definitely.

Since we talked about value now: my father paid a total of $110,000 for the house he still owns, average sales in his neighborhood are around $300,000 today..ya know what that means....MOVE TO A CHEAPER NEIGHBORHOOD!

I guess there is no point in arguing here. I am telling you that this is the reason the economy is tanking. If you are indeed correct and there is no way to fix this through legislation and that we must rely on "personal responsibility", then we are in very big trouble. Because until this issue is fixed, you will continue to see the economy decline. If you think 6800 DOW is low, just wait and see.

Regardless of neighborhood, median home price in 80 (when I was born) was around 65k. Median home price as of January of 09, with the steep decline of the market, is about 200k.

Yeah, and the avg salary was $19.5K...it is now $41K. So house prices escalated at near the same rate as salary. So what is the point again? So the avg house cost 4 times your salary in 1980, to date it is 5 times your salary...how is that a HUGE unfair leap in nearly 3 decades, seems pretty flat to me?? :tsk: Again, stop the BS excuses for why people can't live by their funds.

Some other 1980 stats btw:

Yearly Inflation Rate USA 13.58%
Year End Close Dow Jones Industrial Average 963
Interest Rates Year End Federal Reserve 21.50%
Average Cost of new house $68,700.00....avg today $164,000
Average Income per year $19,500.00.....avg today $41,000
Average Monthly Rent $300.00
Cost of a gallon of Gas $1.19
Average cost new car $7,200.00
Mens Casual Shirt $14.00

your right, guess I'm done

It was not 40k back then by the way and I agree with you that the cost of living is hugely different from when I was a kid in the 80's.

Not a matter of being right, but accurate in interpretation.

I guess I'm a nut :) haha.

I don't agree, the costs are near the same the methods and madness are different today then they were in the 80's. A 21% interest rate has a way of limiting debt and making you live by your funds/cash. Cheap money...BLEEDS debt.

When I say cost of living is higher, I'm also including housing costs. Are you saying that clothing, energy, food are near the same? I don't know about those but was assuming they were also higher.