Quote:
Originally Posted by Robbie
Average income takes into account EVERYBODY in the country.
And it doesn't take into account different costs of living.
I lived in Fla. throughout the 1980's and lived like a king on $500 a week playing in bands.
I lived in South Carolina and Georgia through the 90's up until 2008 and lived like a oil sultan. lol
But I bet if I'd lived in New York City I wouldn't have.
I'm in total agreement with you on the costs of things. But it isn't just "nice houses" and "nice cars" that require bank loans these days...it's ALL cars and houses. 
The first house I lived in as a child was 5 bedrooms/3 baths on a half acre of land in central Florida in the 1960's. It was $12,000 and my dad bought it outright. No bank loan.
Our first "fancy" car was a 1972 Delta Royal 88 Oldsmobile. My dad paid for that in cash too...it was a little over $5,000 and everybody in our town thought we were out of our minds for paying that much.
It almost seems like you can't buy ANYTHING these days without taking out a loan. You can't go to the doctor without insurance. Hell, I even see on the bottom of my energy bill that they have a way for people to set up PAYMENTS!!! WTF? You have to pay it every month already! lol |
Very true. Where you live has a lot to do with how far a dollar will go. I saw a story on CNN a few months ago about a couple that had just gotten married. They were from the Bay Area and he had just graduated college and was an accountant. He got offered a job making $75K per year. Not bad for right out of school with no experience, but the cost of living in that area was so high in that area that money wouldn't be going very far. They ended up moving to Austin, TX where he was offered a job for $50K a year, but the cost of living was so much cheaper they would live a much nicer life.
Also, I agree with you about any house or car needing credit. We are at a time right now where the average wage earner can't afford the average home nor the average car so if you want those things you have no choice but use credit and if you overspend on them then you end up being house broke so you use credit to then buy furniture, a TV, and just about anything else. It is a crazy cycle people can get themselves into.