I agree, things are much more expensive proportionately speaking to the cost of living. Not only that but there is much more things to buy. Things are just different all the way around. For one thing, credit was not handed out like it is today. Nobody would have put $600 cell phone in my hand unless I had a-1 credit or cash on the barrel. Today, you go in, sign a contract and walk away in big debt. I couldn't get a credit card until I was later in my twenties. My stepson who has a lousy job history got one when he was 20, defaulted on it and got another one and defaulted on that and then bought a used car from the dealer and is about to default on that. Back when I was his age, I was paying about $400 for cars because a dealer wouldn't talk to me. As I said elsewhere in this thread, I didn't get my first brand new car until 4 years ago.

What I'm getting at is if all this credit is being extended to all these people and all these people are defaulting on all these loans then the money has to come from somewhere for all these companies providing product to make money. It comes from the high prices we pay for everything and the low wages to run lean. Millennials need to avoid that credit trap. Pay cash and avoid all the fees.

Also, take a look at cars. When I was a kid, I remember looking at cars with my dad. The ones he was looking at were going for about $4 or $5 thousand. You had to crank the windows by hand, you had to use a key to unlock it and the warrenty didn't last long. The good thing about these cars was that when they broke down, you could fix it. You can't really compare apples to apples the cars today with the cars from when I was a kid. I haven't had to put a penny into the car I bought 4 years ago and the car has every feature by default. The downside is that when it breaks down I have to take it in and it's going to be expensive. Give me my 71 Duster back. Also, loans are much longer these days to make the car more affordable. 72 months? That's a joke.

Still, while I was out on my own, I was no stranger to 80 hour work weeks, two part time jobs on top of my full time job and having to chose between heat and food. I'm rambling, it's the bourbon. What I'm getting at is there's work for those who are willing to find it and it always sucks when you are starting out. It builds character.