They don’t realize it, but millenials are suffering from being the most regulated generation.
The cost of cars used to only be about 10% the average income, now they are over 25%. This is due to expensive required features like airbags. In fact, most insurance companies will consider a car “totaled” if the airbag deploys.
Even your appliances are becoming “unaffordable”. You used to be able to pick up stuff for a couple hundred bucks but now, loaded with “eco friendly” features, they are not only more expensive, but less reliable, meaning, you’ll need to replace them more frequently.
For example, for heat pumps/AC to meet efficiency standards, manufacturers have had to reduce the thickness of the exchange coils (only way to achieve it). However, this reduction in material means that it wears out faster due to the physics of thermal expansion/contraction (metal fatigue).
So, life is getting pretty expensive. You may not have noticed it as much as you may be established in your career, so the incremental differences may only be slight changes to your bottom line.
But when starting out, when you’re not making squat, you are totally f’d by the cost of regulation nation consuming a substantial percentage of any income you may happen to get.
The high unemployment, by the way, is the natural result of living in a socialist country like the US.
Excellent points.
Very good points. Thanks for the reminder. That cost of living is going to get worse very soon. Just wait until the cost of energy “necessarily skyrockets.”