[bobolino123]

Lack of companies who earn a lot or have a lot of cash / good business model. Currently open FAANG engineering positions are close to 0 (Still more than 600 positions in the US) and there are single digit "FAANG-like" companies here (hundreds in the US).

I don't think that Germany will ever catch up tbh. There is no incentive. Once you earn a little more, the progressive tax rate is too high and eats everthing away. Less people pursue engineering in the first place, because net wages are so compressed. Also just look at real estate.

Munich:

- Median house price: USD 1’534’933 for ~1500 sqft

- Median salary: USD 59k pre-tax.

The pension system will break in the next decades. Actually it already is.. it is already heavily financed by other taxes.

This country has other perks like more vacation days, but making bank is definitely not one of them tho.

Many academics emigrate to Switzerland, USA, Netherland or Canada - me included.

[api]

How can house prices like that vs median salary like that possibly exist?

[dukeyukey]

By-and-;arge Germans don't own their own homes. The median age in Germany is about 45, but less than half (~49%) own their own homes. That compares to about 65% in both the UK and US, both younger than Germany.