How the cost of living has changed from late 70's

DXP55 said:
What Hans Christian Anderson fairy tale books have you and rest of this generation been reading.

The main boomer generation wasn't all the same - Very few of the country lived in London where pay was much higher than anywhere else in UK and they down there bought their council houses and sold them for big prices - That had a knock on for whole of UK and prices increased although pay stayed lower here.

We could never have had a council house as we didn't have kids so we rented furnished then unfurnished - we then saver for a deposit on a house and at one point interest rate hit 12%+ and my income didn't cover the mortgage so good job wife worked.
From there it's as my OP above.

So when I retired 23 yrs ago and collected my whacking great final salary pension I was ovewhelmed.
On retirement my salary was 2/3rds of the national average so being clever work that out then half it for my pension -Now see how much it is after 23 yrs of inflation and I can tell you the girl over the road that works at Tesco picks up more than me.
The wife and I like a lot of the people of our age who did buy their own houses were the same as me - Property owner but not rich by any means. We don't buy things we can't afford - we never took out debt but saved for it - Not quite like this gen who "WANT'S IT NOW.

The wifes parents bought their council house for around 50k and it sold for £120k when they died years later. - that was divided by two. (her sister)

I just wish you lot would look at the whole picture not the tasty bit's you pick out to support your flawed argument.

The NHS did indeed work but we the boomers didn't vote in smarmy face Bliar who opened up this country to the scum of the world - How can something work when another 4million are added to the list but not paying in - of course it is broke.

Your gen has so many funny groups who are managing to force the police to change the way they work.

Our life wasn't easy - we worked hard day in day out and made do - nothing wife and I had was handed to us on a plate -we worked for it. We couldn't even afford a washing washine when we got our first house -we had a wishy washy ringer machine given to us -Would you accept that today -I very much doubt you would.

Anyway do what we did and work hard -do overtime -save your money -don't go on expensive holidays -don't waste it on trivia -buy a left hand drive Citroen 2CV like we did - or a rusty DAF 44 or Fiat Panda. And main thing -Don't have kids unless you can afford them - I have spent my life paying family allowance for other peoples kid and now I am subsidising child care. Can't you all pay your own way and save me a bit of tax.
:rolleyes:

My car is a 13 yr old Focus.
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And here is the voice of how it actually is for the majority of us boomers .

I was flamed for all the millennials moaning about not getting on the housing ladder and prices were to high when I told them how they could very easily get on the ladder - but no you all thought you were entitled to buy a house up the road in suburbia on you combined £50k wages and still have your mokachocafrappylatte every morning from Starbucks without saving any money!

Unless you have a gold plated trust fund ( majority don’t ) it’s just called hard graft - end of.
 
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Bald-Eagle22 said:
And here is the voice of how it actually is for the majority of us boomers .
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I'm not a millennial but this voice of a boomer sounds like it was no tougher than it is for the younger generations now.

You say how easy it is to buy a house but for a lot of people even on a double 50k income (which incidentally is double the average wage), well it's not unless you're willing to make some sacrifices. Now on that I'm not too bothered about, as sometimes you need to move out of your comfort zone to get what you want.

That said it's harder than ever to get on the property ladder for the younger generations. You were able to buy a property for 4.5x your salary or thereabouts. There's little chance for that now. You need either 2 incomes or shared ownership schemes if they still exist. Or be willing to live somewhere you don't want to just to get on the ladder. Or if you're able to afford a place will it be near any worthwhile jobs? You have to be able to get to work too.

Also the majority of the boomers undoubtedly voted for us to leave Europe which has further ****** the younger generations as well.

If you really cared about the future generations you would vote or behave in a more equitable way to support them rather than demonstrate superiority and the "we had it harder" rhetoric.

You're able to retire and live in relative comfort with your gold plated pensions and fully paid for homes that are now worth probably eye watering amounts.

I mean I'm not bitter about it at all, good on you! I'm fortunate that I have got a home (more than 1 actually), but I also don't worry about me, I think about the future generations, of which my children are part of. What the younger generations don't like is boomers that bemoan the younger generations who have different struggles to you that you just don't understand. They don't have it any easier than you had it. It's just different. A little bit of empathy would go a long way.
 
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Bald-Eagle22 said:
And here is the voice of how it actually is for the majority of us boomers .

I was flamed for all the millennials moaning about not getting on the housing ladder and prices were to high when I told them how they could very easily get on the ladder - but no you all thought you were entitled to buy a house up the road in suburbia on you combined £50k wages and still have your mokachocafrappylatte every morning from Starbucks .

Unless you have a gold plated trust fund ( majority don’t ) it’s just called hard graft - end of.
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In 1970 the average wage was about £955 a year, including part time. The average house was about £4,000.

Today the average house in the UK is £294,000, for the equivilent buying power the average wage would need to be £70,100. It isn't even close to that, and things like rent, gas, electric etc. are also far higher.

People on a combined £50,000 wage should be able to buy a house. £50,000 in 2023, based on inflation is equvilent to almost £4,000 in 1970. 4x the income, but still can't afford a home.

Freefaller said:
I'm not a millennial but this voice of a boomer sounds like it was no tougher than it is for the younger generations now.

You say how easy it is to buy a house but for a lot of people even on a double 50k income (which incidentally is double the average wage),
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It's not double, the average wage is about £33k. It's 3 times.
 
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I think it's pretty clear the boomer gen may have had the best time period ever for the average Joe.

I'm not complaining. As there are benefits now.

But healthcare, pensions, retirement, I home ownership? You cannot argue that these areas are in decline now.
I feel for the generation below me (im 37) as without a great job you can kiss home ownership goodbye. You probably won't get a state pension, there may be no NHS at all, and private pension (let's say 4pc you've been paying) will be worth naff all.


You will have to work till you drop.
 
Bald-Eagle22 said:
And here is the voice of how it actually is for the majority of us boomers .

I was flamed for all the millennials moaning about not getting on the housing ladder and prices were to high when I told them how they could very easily get on the ladder - but no you all thought you were entitled to buy a house up the road in suburbia on you combined £50k wages and still have your mokachocafrappylatte every morning from Starbucks without saving any money!

Unless you have a gold plated trust fund ( majority don’t ) it’s just called hard graft - end of.
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He goes on about 12 %interest but fails say it was claimed against tax.

They forget their generation started the whole package holidays etc... I really find it amusing they say they went without. Commercialism started in the 70s and took off in the 80s in the UKs. So please don't give me that rubbish. You guys has pubs galore etc.

Didn't the boomers eat in cafes having their bacon sausage with a tea or coffees for Breakfast. while our gen can only afford coffees in the morning, as we don't have time, as both partners have to work, while back in the boomers time it was uncommon for both to work. The is one of the reasons why mental health issues have shot up.

We work much harder than your generation, what you boomers took a week we do, it takes us an hour, unfortunately this has to do with advancement in tech. Another reason for mental health problems in this country.

They keep missing out those bits.

And do not get me started with freedoms, we have. Less freedom than the boomers.
 
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The 1970's was a different planet. Everybody's budget was different from today. Far fewer had cars those who did had one on the drive, many did not have a telephone, absolutely nobody had an ISP. Food was generally more expensive compared with wages. Heating or eating was often a choice then too. Many times in my twenties, cheese on toast was a main meal. People rarely ate out or ate takeout either. We had crashes and depressions too.

There is almost nothing recognisable between the basket of goods in 1973 and that of 2023 except a few basic food items. These threads always end the same in rancour, we was robbed...no you weren't, endlessly. People are just living their lives.
 
Mrwong said:
He goes on about 12 %interest but fails say it was claimed against tax.

They forget their generation started the whole package holidays etc... I really find it amusing they say they went without. Commercialism started in the 70s and took off in the 80s in the UKs. So please don't give me that rubbish. You guys has pubs galore etc.

Didn't the boomers eat in cafes having their bacon sausage with a tea or coffees for Breakfast. while our gen can only afford coffees in the morning, as we don't have time, as both partners have to work, while back in the boomers time it was uncommon for both to work.
They keep missing out those bits.

And do not get me started with freedoms, we have. Less freedom than the boomers.
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You are blaming the boomer's but you really have to blame Thatcher and pretty much every government after that which has ran this country into the ground for greed. If you want to get really pedantic you can thank the exploitation of slaves and other countries as a reason we are a developed country today so maybe we deserve this fall from grace. In the grand scheme of things we are still vastly better off than the vast majority of the planet.

Yes the situation is bleak but moaning about it will not change it. You make do with what you have and enjoy your life without looking at what others have.
 
adam cool dude said:
You are blaming the boomer's but you really have to blame Thatcher and pretty much every government after that which has ran this country into the ground for greed. If you want to get really pedantic you can thank the exploitation of slaves and other countries as a reason we are a developed country today so maybe we deserve this fall from grace. In the grand scheme of things we are still vastly better off than the vast majority of the planet.

Yes the situation is bleak but moaning about it will not change it. You make do with what you have and enjoy your life without looking at what others have.
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Boomers were looked after by the state from Cradle to Grave. Our generation will not see that, yet we are paying for it.

We pay far more in taxes but will get a lot less out, while the boomers paid less into taxes and getting much more out.

Boomers voted in the party, so you can't put the entire blame on her.

This is why our country is in such a mess, and why those with any skills are leaving. On top of this we are subsidising X public companies for something that was supposed to be self funding, which then ends up in stakeholders pockets.

Someone mentioned benefits tax credits, we'll tax credits are being inflated away it was a subsidy for companies to keep pay low. It should have never been implemented.
 
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Oh btw water companies are planning to roll out smart meters, charge different rates throughout the day.

So while babyboomers could use unlimited water for one price our generation will be able to use 120 litters then the surge price will kick in.
Surge price already being discussed for ⚡ prices.
Effectively pay more get less.

Still amazing that boomers say they had it harder.
 
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There is certainly a dystopian feel about the trajectory the UK is on. A lot of it is self inflicted, tragedy of the commons etc.

I was looking at Rwanda earlier today and thought it looked a nice place actually. The way they are planning their towns, leafy green streets and quality of the road paving is much better than here. There's a lot to be optimistic about over there.

Contrast to the UK and not only is cost of living difficult, but there is quite a bit of decay creeping in. Basic things like bin collections don't get done properly. Dead high streets, homeless people begging for money, druggies etc.

My theory is that the economy is engineered to keep people in the rat race as long as possible and the easiest way of doing that is to keep housing difficult to buy. The cycle of low/high interest rates, monetary debasement helps prolong that process, keeping things just out of grasp for the average person.
 
Freefaller said:
I'm not a millennial but this voice of a boomer sounds like it was no tougher than it is for the younger generations now.

You say how easy it is to buy a house but for a lot of people even on a double 50k income (which incidentally is double the average wage), well it's not unless you're willing to make some sacrifices. Now on that I'm not too bothered about, as sometimes you need to move out of your comfort zone to get what you want.

That said it's harder than ever to get on the property ladder for the younger generations. You were able to buy a property for 4.5x your salary or thereabouts. There's little chance for that now. You need either 2 incomes or shared ownership schemes if they still exist. Or be willing to live somewhere you don't want to just to get on the ladder. Or if you're able to afford a place will it be near any worthwhile jobs? You have to be able to get to work too.

Also the majority of the boomers undoubtedly voted for us to leave Europe which has further ****** the younger generations as well.

If you really cared about the future generations you would vote or behave in a more equitable way to support them rather than demonstrate superiority and the "we had it harder" rhetoric.

You're able to retire and live in relative comfort with your gold plated pensions and fully paid for homes that are now worth probably eye watering amounts.

I mean I'm not bitter about it at all, good on you! I'm fortunate that I have got a home (more than 1 actually), but I also don't worry about me, I think about the future generations, of which my children are part of. What the younger generations don't like is boomers that bemoan the younger generations who have different struggles to you that you just don't understand. They don't have it any easier than you had it. It's just different. A little bit of empathy would go a long way.
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And you may have eluded to my past posts . I had 2 jobs ( cab driving part time at weekends ) and had to move away from my what I call my roots area to afford a home. I couldn’t afford a house in Hackney in the early 80’s and couldn’t afford one now so moved further out to Essex.

I’ll say it again , couples on a combined income of 50 to 60K can get on the ladder very easily . A few years of saving and there are plenty of houses nationwide you can buy. Is it in your area you want to live in , probably not but you can get on the ladder . Hell I’d love to move to Islamorada but can’t afford the same type of house I have now. The price of property regardless if I have no mortgages (but I have three ) is relative to when you’re on the ladder , I’ve just given you a very easy way to get on one . If you then want to rent it out and live locally then that might be an option for you . Either way you end up with a paid for property in later life.

I think generations X , millennials and now what I think they call gen alpha have bigger issues to worry about than home ownership though and this is something I do agree with and it’s not in my opinion anything to do with house prices.

Pensions - yes I have a final salary pension state pension and was very lucky having served to gain one AFPS 75 . The majority of you guys don’t and your at the mercy of work place pensions and sips that are just glorified savings accounts . I place this down to nothing more than corporate greed and shareholders profit- funny how they all stopped once most companies went public !

My fear is once you guys do get on the ladder your going to have to sell it to fund your retirement and that is a total tradegy.

Government need to think outside the box as the worlds biggest Ponzi scheme ( state pension ) is going to run out of steam very soon . Maybe drop £5 to 10k into a compound interest fund for every new born and then scrap it .

Oh on a side notE I can assure you I did not vote for Brexit , killing off your biggest trading partner with no future deal will come back to haunt Boris sooner or later.
 
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Bald-Eagle22 said:
And you may have eluded to my past posts . I had 2 jobs ( cab driving part time at weekends ) and had to move away from my what I call my roots area to afford a home. I couldn’t afford a house in Hackney in the early 80’s and couldn’t afford one now so moved further out to Essex.

I’ll say it again , couples on a combined income of 50 to 60K can get on the ladder very easily . A few years of saving and there are plenty of houses nationwide you can buy. Is it in your area you want to live in , probably not but you can get on the ladder . Hell I’d love to move to Islamorada but can’t afford the same type of house I have now. The price of property regardless if I have no mortgages (but I have three ) is relative to when you’re on the ladder , I’ve just given you a very easy way to get on one . If you then want to rent it out and live locally then that might be an option for you . Either way you end up with a paid for property in later life.

I think generations X , millennials and now what I think they call gen alpha have bigger issues to worry about than home ownership though and this is something I do agree with and it’s not in my opinion anything to do with house prices.

Pensions - yes I have a final salary pension state pension and was very lucky having served to gain one AFPS 75 . The majority of you guys don’t and your at the mercy of work place pensions and sips that are just glorified savings accounts . I place this down to nothing more than corporate greed and shareholders profit- funny how they all stopped once most companies went public !

My fear is once you guys do get on the ladder your going to have to sell it to fund your retirement and that is a total tradegy.

Government need to think outside the box as the worlds biggest Ponzi scheme ( state pension ) is going to run out of steam very soon . Maybe drop £5 to 10k into a compound interest fund for every new born and the. scrap it .
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Kind of agree with this.
It will be in retirement (or lack of) that my (millennial) and the next gen even more so will suffer later in life.

My parents (boomers) have had a final salary and huge estate fuelled retirement.
So I'll likely benefit from inheritance.

But that inheritance will likely hello to become mortgage free.



I'm the end, despite having a better job, no kids I'll never be anywhere near my parents wealth due to dire pension (private and public) and crippling end of life costs.

I fully expect to have to equity release my house later in life. Luckily, I'm not having kids so do not have to worry about inheritance or their futures.


With that I'll probably be OK. But yes, the biggest change from boomer to now will be lack of retirement options for the average person.



Really, the burden on the state is going to be so great I have no idea how UK is going to cope. Well, I do. A means tested state pension and slow dismantling of the nhs.
 
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In addition to the above, it is no coincidence that pension performance has dropped 2008 to 2022 due to the pitiful interest rates available from many institutions. In the good old bad old days of the eighties and nineties, yes we were paying eight per cent or more on mortgages but the six per cent salary matched by the employer was also gaining from similar percentages on the markets. Wish them away all you want but you do need decent interest rates in the economy.

In 1982 aged 29 I had no pension or much prospects of getting one.
 
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Bald-Eagle22 said:
And you may have eluded to my past posts . I had 2 jobs ( cab driving part time at weekends ) and had to move away from my what I call my roots area to afford a home. I couldn’t afford a house in Hackney in the early 80’s and couldn’t afford one now so moved further out to Essex.

I’ll say it again , couples on a combined income of 50 to 60K can get on the ladder very easily . A few years of saving and there are plenty of houses nationwide you can buy. Is it in your area you want to live in , probably not but you can get on the ladder . Hell I’d love to move to Islamorada but can’t afford the same type of house I have now. The price of property regardless if I have no mortgages (but I have three ) is relative to when you’re on the ladder , I’ve just given you a very easy way to get on one . If you then want to rent it out and live locally then that might be an option for you . Either way you end up with a paid for property in later life.
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In my first roles I spent most of my time travelling to where the work was (projects) it's easy when you're single, though it does disrupt hobbies and "normal" life somewhat.

There's no point in moving somewhere where there is no work - so that doesn't work either. That said I come from a part of the world where renting is perfectly normal - but in this country renting is broken. This country however is obsessed with home ownership which has become ridiculously expensive.

I think generations X , millennials and now what I think they call gen alpha have bigger issues to worry about than home ownership though and this is something I do agree with and it’s not in my opinion anything to do with house prices.

Pensions - yes I have a final salary pension state pension and was very lucky having served to gain one AFPS 75 . The majority of you guys don’t and your at the mercy of work place pensions and sips that are just glorified savings accounts . I place this down to nothing more than corporate greed and shareholders profit- funny how they all stopped once most companies went public !

My fear is once you guys do get on the ladder your going to have to sell it to fund your retirement and that is a total tradegy.

Government need to think outside the box as the worlds biggest Ponzi scheme ( state pension ) is going to run out of steam very soon . Maybe drop £5 to 10k into a compound interest fund for every new born and the. scrap it .
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I agree there's far bigger problems than home ownership. The "B word" has ****** the opportunities for the future generations, then we have the sustainability issues, the climate issues, the lack of proper quality food, importing low quality foods from across the world, education, health issues, obesity issues, jobs and skills.

I mean I'm lucky I have 1 final salary pension but it's not particularly large pot, I was on a low salary and only there for 4 years. However I plough a lot into my pension which I partially manage (I've got for a mid-aggressive investment strategy, but I also choose the most ethical funds I can from my values), because when I retire (which won't be in this country) I want to be able to enjoy the time off, I work hard (as do most people) and I do feel entitled to enjoy my retirement and have no issues with trying to bring it forward as quickly/early as possible.

If for some nightmare I'm still in this country when I retire, and have to sell the house to fund retirement, it's not a big deal, I should be downsizing anyway - people don't seem to want to do that.

However, what I don't like (and this is not aimed at you Mr Eagle) is the older generations saying "we had it harder" - that really bothers me as you didn't. Every generation has its own problems to deal with, whilst it may not be an issue for some it is for others. Hence my ask for empathy.

Those people that are earning the average wage in the UK are going to have very little private pension, and will struggle to save for a property and spend a lot of it on rent, and let alone buy good quality food which is now more expensive than the cheap salt and sugar ladened stuff that they can afford. Moreover, they will also struggle with enjoying life - whether it be holidays, days out with their kids etc... Sure, you can tighten your belt and make it work but what sort of life is that? We're supposed to be in a modern 1st world country, yet we are such a divided nation it's just not a very equitable existence, and that's the thing that bothers me the most.
 
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