[caddemon]

How big was their house? 3 of my 4 grandparents grew up in multi-generational houses, all of their parents were very working class, and yes they "afforded" raising kids and housing their elderly. Their houses were not bigger than 100 sqm though. All shared rooms, and there was typically 1 bathroom for the entire household. Clothes were hand me downs and meals were only what they could afford, so the meat in their diet was mostly weird low quality stuff. They shared bath water! The lifestyle described is 100% still attainable today. It is your parent's choice not to have grandparents in the house - in line with societal standards today, but certainly not impossible.

[lm28469]

In the tech bubble maybe, but in the real world certainly not. In the golden age you had that as a fancy factory worker, now you have that if you're well paid in a well paid industry

Real wages completely flattened since the 70s, and even declined in some western countries, while working hours and retirement age both increased. No one in 2024 supports a family and buys a new home/car on a factory salary, I can't even afford any of that while being in the top 20% earners in Germany, given the average cost per sqm and the current mortgage settings, I could afford a 50sqm house with a 30 years mortgage...

[xyzelement]

// can't even afford any of that while being in the top 20% earners in Germany

I ask this as a sincere question - according to Google, 50% of germans live in a home they own, and obviously some Germans are having kids (although the birth rate is horrendous)

Who are the people that are buying home and having kids? Are these activities limited to the 1%?

[lm28469]

Couples with high income, inheritance, people who live on credit and debt, &c.

Not many can afford a new house with a single income, let alone to support a family with kids, maybe not 1% earners but definitely around 10%. A friend of mine has kids, they spend 60% of their household income on the flat they rent (2 salaries, both a good 20% above average for the city), that's before the car, heating, electricity, kids spendings, food, &c. and they're already one hour away from the city center by train

There isn't much up for debate I'm afraid:

https://assets.bwbx.io/images/users/iqjWHBFdfxIU/ifomkf25BuW...

https://fred.stlouisfed.org/graph/fredgraph.png?id=QDEN628BI...

https://www.statista.com/graphic/1/416207/average-annual-wag...

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Carlo-Jaeger/publicatio...

https://www.move.org/app/uploads/2020/04/Home-price-changes-...