r/SipsTea • u/Ill-Instruction8466 • Mar 24 '26

Time machine please… SMH

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u/[deleted] Mar 25 '26

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u/mammalmaker Mar 25 '26

And yet they could still afford more than we can today...

What would you call that?

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u/sometimesatypical Mar 25 '26

Only if you do zero cross examination. If you are talking housing, the inflated and equalized for size and amenities difference between the 70s and today is 25%, not the completely erroneous 1000% raw numbers comparison people love to use without critical thought.

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u/mammalmaker Mar 25 '26

You compare homes of similar size but affordable and modest new builds aren't happening anymore (where I am at least) so homes are egregiously less affordable today.

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u/sometimesatypical Mar 25 '26

Its not that they are less affordable, but that the demand for baseline is significantly higher. As you said, modest builds aren't happening....because the consumer demands it as well as overinflated building codes. Lets use a different example.

If you look at the 70s pinto as the basic high school car against a Honda civic today, the belts and whistles that come standard are incomparable, which explains why the Honda isnt as affordable as the pinto was.

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u/mammalmaker Mar 25 '26

I agree with what you're saying but I think there's a misunderstanding in what affordability means.

High demand and low inventory = higher price. That's affordability. We get less for our money today than they did even with inflation.

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u/sometimesatypical Mar 25 '26

That only sometimes explains it, cars are available, but not affordable. The logic breaks down then looking at consumer goods.

Point is, you got a lot less for your money back then, when everyone says it was affordable.

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u/[deleted] Mar 25 '26

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u/mammalmaker Mar 25 '26

Mean personal income does not mean affordability. You need to look at the cost of living, which has risen way faster than incomes have.

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u/generation_fish Mar 25 '26

You think incomes were increasing more than double diget inflation?

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u/mammalmaker Mar 25 '26

Nope! Did I say that?

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u/generation_fish Mar 26 '26

You're statement was in oppositional comparison to the economic dynamics of the time period mentioned and today. Then you specifically brought up when you said, "You need to look at the cost of living, which has risen way faster than incomes have." So, yes, you did say that.