What was the average cost to buy a house or car in the 80s and 90s?

[maflynn]

Oh let me just wrap up that my grandmother didn't drive or own a car, and she lugged my mother, and aunts around (when they were kids) all over the place including Nantasket beach in Hull. There were buses that used to from Boston to Nantasket. Took them hours to get there, and back, but it was their only way, I don't think there's any way to get to hull from Boston by way of bus now a days.

This was about 70 years ago btw.

 

[pshufd]

Of course a 100 years ago, most people didn't own a car and there were plenty of services that allowed you get around or do what you needed within your neighborhood. In 2023, you are seriously behind the 8ball if you don't have car.

Want to go to Ikea? Can't do that. Want to an amusement park? Can't do that. Want to go to the beach, be prepared for taking multiple buses and trains (depending on what part of the city you're in). Just want to go the mall, your choices will be severely limited (Cambridge galleria). Need to go food shopping and a supermarket isn't close - be prepared to lug the groceries on the train.

There are plenty of people in the city that don't own a car, many of them I suspect would want a car if they could afford it. There's precious few who live in the city and by choice do not have a car.

We did go to amusement parks, the beach, our relatives' place in Bangor. I don't think that there were malls back then. For small amounts of groceries, I could just bicycle. The city is based on a village system and, wherever you are in the city, you're within a mile of a grocery store, hardware store, bank and other services. The city was designed well before car transportation.

We took the train, buses, etc. Cambridge Galleria is not a big deal to get to - you just take public transportation into the West End and walk over the Charles to get there. Or you take the red line to Kendall. I had chemo back in 2018 and walked 100 miles a week for 2 months as a challenge. I really don't like places where you have to drive to get anywhere.

 

[pshufd]

Oh let me just wrap up that my grandmother didn't drive or own a car, and she lugged my mother, and aunts around (when they were kids) all over the place including Nantasket beach in Hull. There were buses that used to from Boston to Nantasket. Took them hours to get there, and back, but it was their only way, I don't think there's any way to get to hull from Boston by way of bus now a days.

This was about 70 years ago btw.

Nantucket was one of the places that we went to in the summer. And we took the MBTA and then the bus I think.

There may not be a bus but there are driver services to get around these days.

In many cases today, not having a car is a plus. The beaches are so crowded and parking so scarce that the ideal approach is to have someone drive you there with their gear and pick you up at an agreed-upon time.

 

[wilberforce]

Houses have always been too expensive, every decade there is the exact same complaint. Every generation seems to think it is unique and has it much harder, but it is not so.
If you don't have the courage to scrimp, work hard and make it work somehow and invest in a house in your early to mid working years you basically miss the boat and suffer financially for ever after.

 

[KaiFiMacFan]

You do realize you countered the assertion "it's too expensive to buy a home" with "you can get a 2BR apartment" and are castigating them for not "doing the research"?

Home ownership absolutely is out of the question for many Gen Y-and-younger people, especially in any decent proximity to a city. Your anecdote about "well they should eat out less" ignores the reality that housing prices have far outpaced wages. Pretty much everyone could do better to save their money, but that doesn't negate the fact that older people could do the same "avocado toast" lifestyle *and* get a house. Not to mention wouldn't have to take out loans to get a four-year degree.

Or to put it another way: in 2021, the median home was unaffordable for people in 69% of counties, according to a real estate firm. One year later, that had jumped to 97%. You cannot save your way out of home pricing that is jumping double digits every year (and so is rent, and so is the price of a car, etc.)

Spot on. This is what people who complain about the younger generations don't get. It isn't just a matter of inflation. Things actually cost more now, even adjusted for inflation. College is much more expensive, home ownership is more expensive (in many areas at least), and wages have not increased at the same rate as the cost of living. Adjusted for inflation, the amount my parents paid for their home in the 90s would be about $450K today. Yet according to Zillow, their house is now worth about $1.2 million. That is not just inflation. That is prices skyrocketing. Saying that everything is the same as it's always been (when it can be proven that it isn't) is just a way to avoid addressing the real problems of today.

 

[pshufd]

Houses have always been too expensive, every decade there is the exact same complaint. Every generation seems to think it is unique and has it much harder, but it is not so.
If you don't have the courage to scrimp, work hard and make it work somehow and invest in a house in your early to mid working years you basically miss the boat and suffer financially for ever after.

I'd have to disagree. If you're buying a house during a market crash, you've hit the lottery. Assuming that your source of income is steady. Our home dropped 40% when we bought it in a market downturn. It then dropped another 38% before bottoming out. It's obviously gone a lot higher since then but the part of the housing market cycle you buy in can make a big difference on your ability to buy and afford a home.

 

[fuchsdh]

Houses have always been too expensive, every decade there is the exact same complaint. Every generation seems to think it is unique and has it much harder, but it is not so.
If you don't have the courage to scrimp, work hard and make it work somehow and invest in a house in your early to mid working years you basically miss the boat and suffer financially for ever after.

Again, this isn't true. Housing has always been expensive, but it has drastically increased in price compared to wages over the past few decades, the same with renting.

The median home price in 1940 was $2,938. Assuming it had stayed static and kept in pace with inflation, that would be only $65,000. Instead it's $416,100.

Spot on. This is what people who complain about the younger generations don't get. It isn't just a matter of inflation. Things actually cost more now, even adjusted for inflation. College is much more expensive, home ownership is more expensive (in many areas at least), and wages have not increased at the same rate as the cost of living. Adjusted for inflation, the amount my parents paid for their home in the 90s would be about $450K today. Yet according to Zillow, their house is now worth about $1.2 million. That is not just inflation. That is prices skyrocketing. Saying that everything is the same as it's always been (when it can be proven that it isn't) is just a way to avoid addressing the real problems of today.

The thing that shocked me when I was in college doing a documentary about Edgar Allen Poe was learning he was kicked out of university because he couldn't afford the roughly $500 yearly cost, which at the time was one of the most expensive colleges in the country. Adjusted for inflation, that super-expensive cost only comes to... around $17K, which makes it comparatively an absolute bargain as the median tuition price is $26K for state schools.

Old people who haven't had to buy a house or go to school in decades lecturing young people about how they had the same situation when they were young when they really, really didn't will never stop being a very dumb, tired record.

 

[Apple fanboy]

When we were saving the deposit for our first house, we didn’t eat out less. We didn’t eat out at all!

Also didn’t drink alcohol or have nights out. It was tough. Even our food bills we cut drastically. We basically focused on one thing. Saving for a house.
We had no car payments, loans or credit cards (never have).

I’m not sure young people today are as able to focus on the one objective in quite the same way.

 

[KaliYoni]

Don't forget, all prices from the past need to be adjusted for inflation. For US$ amounts, I like this online calculator:

Inflation Calculator | Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis

What’s a dollar worth? How far does a past dollar stretch to equal the modern dollar? What would past prices be today?

www.minneapolisfed.org

For example, 1 dollar in 1980 is equivalent to $3.69 in 2023.

 

[pshufd]

Don't forget, all prices from the past need to be adjusted for inflation. For US$ amounts, I like this online calculator:

Inflation Calculator | Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis

What’s a dollar worth? How far does a past dollar stretch to equal the modern dollar? What would past prices be today?

www.minneapolisfed.org

For example, 1 dollar in 1980 is equivalent to $3.69 in 2023.

I like gold as a metric. in 2000, an ounce was $250. It's about $1,900 right now.

 

[wilberforce]

Comparing with house prices in the 1940s or earlier is irrelevant. Nobody here was in the market for buying a house in the 1940s (unless you are about 100 years old). To keep this real and relevant, consider the last 5 decades or so.

 

[KaliYoni]

I like gold as a metric. in 2000, an ounce was $250. It's about $1,900 right now.

Personally, I regard gold as more of a sentiment indicator than an economic indicator.

 

[compwiz1202]

I also want to add that Toyota's have almost no available vehicles, so while Toyotas have an affordable sedan, good luck in finding one. Then there's those dealershps that impose "market adjustments" where you're paying 2, 4, 6k over MSRP just because they can

If people refused buy from them, they would have to change. My coworker needs a new vehicle because hers got flooded, and she said only the one Ford dealership is doing the $5 BS. So just go to one that isn't

 

[fuchsdh]

Comparing with house prices in the 1940s or earlier is irrelevant. Nobody here was in the market for buying a house in the 1940s (unless you are about 100 years old). To keep this real and relevant, consider the last 5 decades or so.

Okay. Median housing price in 1980 was $55K, CPI-adjusted price still less than $215K.

 

[smoking monkey]

You do realize you countered the assertion "it's too expensive to buy a home" with "you can get a 2BR apartment" and are castigating them for not "doing the research"?

Home ownership absolutely is out of the question for many Gen Y-and-younger people, especially in any decent proximity to a city. Your anecdote about "well they should eat out less" ignores the reality that housing prices have far outpaced wages. Pretty much everyone could do better to save their money, but that doesn't negate the fact that older people could do the same "avocado toast" lifestyle *and* get a house. Not to mention wouldn't have to take out loans to get a four-year degree.

Or to put it another way: in 2021, the median home was unaffordable for people in 69% of counties, according to a real estate firm. One year later, that had jumped to 97%. You cannot save your way out of home pricing that is jumping double digits every year (and so is rent, and so is the price of a car, etc.)

An apartment is still a home in my books and it’s a great start for somebody in their twenties. I think this is the problem. People want it all at the start. Gotta work your way up.

Comparing to older generations is the path to nowhere. We live in these times, there is no changing the past. Does it suck? Yeah, of course it does. But complaining about it and giving up doesn’t help.

My friend’s son is 19. Instead of going to college he got a job in a bank. Starting at the lowest level. Saved for a year and last year put a deposit on a place. He’s 19. So please don’t tell me you can’t do it.

My anecdote was to illustrate priorities and that wants and needs often get confused.

 

[AustinIllini]

Which country, which state, which city? During the 80s and 90s there were also many variations in prices.

You can check this out for a real estate comparison between 2022 and 1980.

Real Estate Trends Then and Now: 80’s Edition – Blueprint Title

blueprinttitle.com

----

This is not me guessing about the reason for the question, but it reminds me of a conversation I had with somebody talking about not being able to get their foot into the real estate market in 2020 January. They were in their 20s. The convo went something like this:

Them: Houses are too expensive.
Me: Really? Have you been studying the market?
Them: No.
Me: You really should be if you want to buy a place.
Them: My salary isn't high enough.
Me: You got a decent job. I'm sure it's enough to buy a 2 bedroom apartment for 250k in a decent location. I can show you right now where you can buy such places.
Them: The bank wouldn't give me a loan. And compared to my parents it's more difficult now.
Me: If you got no major debt and a bit of savings, you'll get a loan easy. Forget about the past. You can't do anything about that.
Them: I have no savings.
Me: Why?
Them: I like traveling and going out eating with friends.
Me: Good luck! (that's where I ended the convo as I realised this person just wanted to complain)

This is getting really PRSI, but your misconception downplays the horrible economic discrepancies between generations.

 

[AustinIllini]

An apartment is still a home in my books and it’s a great start for somebody in their twenties. I think this is the problem. People want it all at the start. Gotta work your way up.

Comparing to older generations is the path to nowhere. We live in these times, there is no changing the past. Does it suck? Yeah, of course it does. But complaining about it and giving up doesn’t help.

My friend’s son is 19. Instead of going to college he got a job in a bank. Starting at the lowest level. Saved for a year and last year put a deposit on a place. He’s 19. So please don’t tell me you can’t do it.

My anecdote was to illustrate priorities and that wants and needs often get confused.

Your analogy is a bad one.

 

[eyoungren]

When we were saving the deposit for our first house, we didn’t eat out less. We didn’t eat out at all!

Also didn’t drink alcohol or have nights out. It was tough. Even our food bills we cut drastically. We basically focused on one thing. Saving for a house.
We had no car payments, loans or credit cards (never have).

I’m not sure young people today are as able to focus on the one objective in quite the same way.

God has been good to us (my wife and I)…

My parents were middle class (my dad an electrical engineer in aerospace and my mom a teacher). Yet by the time I hit driving age (16) there'd been three older cars in the driveway for some time.

In 1986 I was given the keys to the family's 1980 Datsun (but not the title). My father sold that car to my wife in 1996 for $1 (she needed a car). Later that same year I was given the 1985 Honda Accord when my parents bought their 1997 Honda Accord. I got the title.

My wife and I cashed out our United Parcel Service pensions when we quit in 1999. That made the move to Phoenix, AZ from Southern California possible. We rented a home, the same home from 2000 to 2018. $900 a month in rent for 18 years.

In 2001 or so we needed a truck - my dad bought us a used 1997 Toyota Tacoma - which we sold a few years later when it developed problems. In 2003 we added a 1993 Nissan Sentra, again bought for us.

In 2008 we were given the 1997 Honda Accord that I mentioned above. In 2015 we qualified enough for a used car loan and took home a 2012 Nissan Sentra. It flooded at some point - gap insurance covered us. It got replaced with a 2013 Nissan Sentra a year later. Our monthly payments were around $230.

In 2018 my dad told us to look for a house. We found one and between my parents, the realtor, the loan company and the homeowner we closed with I think 1% down. My parents provided the down and they paid off the 2013 Sentra which was a requirement to qualify. We have mortgage insurance because of the minimum down payment - but the car has been paid off since 2018. Our monthly mortgage is $1491/month.

The same time we qualified for the house we were told by our then landlord that the owner was raising our rent after 18 years there. Fortunately, we had a home to move into.

My dad died in 2019, a year after getting us into the home. I guess that was his last thing he wanted to get done - put his kid, daughter-in-law and grandkids into a house. Five years later we're still here - even with COVID having caused problems.

I have a better job now than I did when we bought the house.

I usually have to worry about eating and all the bills, but when it comes to cars that's always seemed to have just happened. And then the house…

 

[fatTribble]

I specifically remember an AT&T commercial advertising you could talk on a long distance call for $2.57 or less for 10 minutes. I’m guessing that was around 1978. That’s about $12 accounting for inflation. So $1.20 a minute for a domestic long distance call. It was definitely different when trying to keep in touch with friends and family.

 

[fatTribble]

My Dad’s 1981 Chevy Caprice was the first new car he paid over $10k for

 

[rm5]

Adjusted for inflation, that super-expensive cost only comes to... around $17K, which makes it comparatively an absolute bargain as the median tuition price is $26K for state schools.

And that's not even close to how much private institutions cost (I'm speaking from experience). And then there's Berklee College of Music's $10,000/year housing cost... which is roughly 3-4x as much as it'd be elsewhere. So yeah, I completely understand your point.

 

[pshufd]

I specifically remember an AT&T commercial advertising you could talk on a long distance call for $2.57 or less for 10 minutes. I’m guessing that was around 1978. That’s about $12 accounting for inflation. So $1.20 a minute for a domestic long distance call. It was definitely different when trying to keep in touch with friends and family.

I had a customer service job back in the 1980s and our monthly telephone bills where I worked were $200 - $500. We had email back then as well. Computing power and storage has dropped really fast over the past 40 years.

 

[smoking monkey]

Your analogy is a bad one.

No. My analogy is actually an excellent one. I'm sorry you don't like it, but one day you'll realise I'm right.

Had the worker in my original story done what I'd suggested, he'd have made some nice capital gains by now and have his foot in the door. Instead he's probably still living with his parents, have 50 games in his Switch queue and spends 20 percent more than he needs to have some food delivery service deliver his food to him because he's too lazy to go and get it himself.

The issue here is that some young people (not all) are upset that a previous generation had it better. It's bad, I am not dismissing that. And there are avenues to make change for the future, but that takes time and effort and sacrifice. So, what are you going to do about your situation right now?

There is so much information now available to us via the internet. The know how is there IF we want it.

 

[maflynn]

Home ownership absolutely is out of the question for many Gen Y-and-younger people, especially in any decent proximity to a city. Your anecdote about "well they should eat out less" ignores the reality that housing prices have far outpaced wages.

I agree, Now allow me say I live in one of them most expensive markets in the country, but 20-something year olds are dealing with lower wages, higher debt and cost increases in the housing market that outpaced inflation. I have a friend who works a decent job at a hospital, doesn't go out to eat much, but could not afford even renting an apartment herself. Like so many people she needed to find an apartment with roommates.

Houses have always been too expensive

So true, but prior generations have not had to deal factors that these kids have been dealing with. I was able to work two jobs, go to school at night and afford an apartment. Now people are working two jobs and many still can't even afford rent.

If you don't have the courage to scrimp, work hard and make it work somehow and invest in a house in your early to mid working years you basically miss the boat and suffer financially for ever after.

I think that's an unfair generalization where so many people starting off in their careers have the deck stacked up against them and accuse them of being the problem is short sited and just plain wrong. Back when I started my career, getting double digit percentages in raises was not unheard, I easily got 10%+ raises and promotions came with real raises.

With that said, lets put some hard numbers to your generalizations.

The average salary for college graduates is 43k (zip recruiter) or 21 dollars an hour. We also have to remember these 20 somethings also have student loans and the average student loan payment is 300 a month.

The median house price for Massachusetts is 600,000, and lets say they were able to somehow come up with a 20% down payment ($120,000). That means they have a mortgage of 480,000 or a monthly payment of 3,500 dollars, I pay 900 dollars a month in escrow , I'm not sure if that's normal or not, but for me that includes real estate and insurance. So now our pretend mortgage is at 4,400 dollars a month

Last time I check 4,400 is larger then 3,000 and that's not including student loans, utilities, food, car payments, car loans, etc.

So please tell me how much scrimping does 20 somethings need to do to be able to afford a 4,400 dollar mortgage payment on a monthly salary of 3,000?

An apartment is still a home in my books and it’s a great start for somebody in their twenties. I think this is the problem. People want it all at the start. Gotta work your way up.

Yes, but do you know the average rent prices in Boston is 2,800 dollars and as mentioned above the average student loan is 300 dollars a month. Fresh graduates cannot even afford a single bedroom apartment.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

I do feel sorry for the generation now trying to buy a house to be honest. House prices have gone through the roof over the past 3 years and interest rates are high. My mortgage is fixed at 1.25% for the next 4 years and a colleague of mine buying his first house has a rate of 6.1%! You have to have at least £30k as a deposit too whereas when I bought my first house in 2007, banks gave you 100% mortgages, just prior to the banking collapse. I was lucky to get on the property ladder when I did. There’s houses in my local area that were £150k a few years ago and are now pushing £250k to £300k! Not a great time to be a first time buyer that’s for sure.