[quote=CA renter]Definitely. Back when I was in college, my roommates and I rented a 3/2 apartment for $710/mo in a working-class, but decent-enough part of town in L.A. We could swing that rent, even though we all had low-paying jobs. These days, the rent for that apartment would probably run around $1,600-$1,750 (or more). The catch? Wages for the types of jobs we had have gone nowhere in that time. Those wages have gone up *maybe* 40%-60% since then.
So, while everyone is applauding the miracle of house price appreciation (and the rent increases that tend to go with it), the truth is that the working class hasn’t really seen any appreciable wage increases for decades, and their purchasing power has dropped significantly, while the upper-income earners and asset owners have probably seen their “wealth” and/or buying power triple or quadruple since then. The wealth/income gap is now HUGE, and it’s only getting worse.[/quote]
Totally agree, CAR. In our case, the min wage was between about $1.10 and $2.40 hr. That was used for union dues and payroll taxes. We got Blue Cross coverage, once weekly uniform laundry svcs and worksite lockers as “union benefits” plus one free meal per workday and employee discounts as patrons from the house. We actually lived on tips, which were NOT taxed at the time. We stacked our bills and rolled our coin on breaks and stood in line to deposit it in our checking accts once a week to pay bills with. Bought daily needs with cash.
I averaged about $1450 mo income and my rent in 3 different dtn SD apts was $140 to $225 (the latter rent incl panoramic bay/ocean view). All rents covered ALL utils. Cable svc was not avail in that area. I used “rabbit ears” on my TV, lol.
I DO think it was much easier for a young person or couple/young family to live on a “non-professional” income at that time. However, the particular job I performed could be strenuous as it required lifting up to 50-lb trays overhead with an open wine carafe in the middle, often with one arm and up and down one or two steps and an excellent (nearly photographic) memory. The uniforms were starched minidresses and the houses were very particular about how they were worn and the level of grooming of their wait staff. Gender, disability and “appearance” discrimination were completely legal, accepted by employees and practiced everywhere :=0
