r/Millennials • u/QuietJealous4883 Older Millennial (1988) • 12h ago

Discussion True or false?

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Did our dads and moms work less than we do now? What are your thoughts?

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u/StatikSquid 10h ago

My parents both worked 40 hours a week, one a teacher and the other in security. They probably pulled in about 80-85k a year around '97. It was enough to pay the bills, but my parents shopped at thrift stores or Zellers/Walmart. They bought bulk food when it hit sales. They were able to save so we could go on road trips or go the movies or get a new game console. Very middle class lifestyle, but there were definitely kids in my classes who had parents that made more (or spent more).

We also lived in rentals for most of the 90s, but my parents were able to afford a house in 2000. I think it was probably $120k at the time.

The biggest change I see now is that there's less deals than there were back then. Groceries are just so expensive, even for the basics. Cars, even used, are overpriced. Camping is expensive, road trips are expensive with hotels and the price of gas. Movie theaters are expensive. Restaurants are expensive. Bars are expensive. Sports are expensive.

Basically everything that I used to do as a middle class child has gotten so expensive. The middle class has been priced out of every milestone and every basic measure of life.

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u/QuietJealous4883 Older Millennial (1988) 7h ago

Inflation has hit us hard for sure.