Not usually? I wish this was true, I know many families and out of about 100, all of them have both parents working. Housing, cars, gas, insurance, electricity, groceries, water, clothing, etc are all a lot more expensive than they were 4 years ago.
We struggled and did without when our kids were little and I stayed home with them.
We just couldn’t buy or do everything that entered our minds.
There are plenty of ways of saving money. Shop sales, thrift stores, garage and yard sales, make your own food instead of taking out or going out. Cut the fast food. Conserve on vacations. Plan trips to run errands and do them all in one trip instead of heading out separately for each trip.
Staying at home saves a BUNDLE in child care costs.
I read somewhere that someone did an analysis and budget and found out that the double income, when all expenses of extras are considered, only brought in 25% more disposable income. That much can be saved by being frugal.
The big problem is the entitlement mentality people have these days that they have to have everything they see their parents have, that took them decades to reach. They are not comparing themselves in their 20’s or 30’s to where their parents were in their 20’s or 30’s.
THAT would be a more accurate comparison.