Venting 101: The Cost of The American Dream

 

The American Dream

When I was growing up in the eighties, the dream was simple: find a job you are happy with, get married, and buy the dream house. Most people I knew also dreamed of having children, but that one was not on my list. Dogs, yes; cats, yes; children, not so much.  I did want the house, though. 

My dream house was a Swiss Chalet style with wood trim back then. It morphed from that into a log house. I wanted rustic splendor with cedar-planked walls, hardwood floors, and large windows overlooking a forested area. I didn't get either one.

My first house was a single-wide trailer on five acres of land in Washington State. It cost under $100,000 and was a forty-five-minute drive from work. My second house was a split-level, four-bedroom, two-bathroom house with a nice-sized yard, hot tub, and full-size deck. It was (I believe) 140,000, and it was five minutes from work. (I learned that with pets, you want to be close to home.) My third house was a manufactured home on one acre of property in the country, with three bedrooms, two baths, a walk-in closet, a full-sized deck with a hot tub, and a sweet backyard with a fire pit. I preferred the city. It cost 180,000. My fourth house was a ranch-style, in town, with three bedrooms, one and a half baths, a large patio, formal dining, and living room, on half an acre. It was ten minutes from work. It cost 240,000. 

The point of all that reminiscing is prices. How can a young couple afford to live the dream? How can they afford a place on their own if they are just starting out? Now, they may get lucky and have some money or an inheritance, or their parents are billionaires and set them up. But the average American? If they're lucky, mom and dad have room for them back at home. 

When I moved back to Utah, I lived with my parents before finding a (loser) of a roommate to rent a 1400 square foot, three bedroom, two bath, formal living room with an office, house with a fully fenced-in backyard for my dog. It cost 1000 a month. We were supposed to split the pay. He never seemed to have any money. Fast forward to fourteen years later, and I am living in a thousand-square-foot townhouse with two bedrooms, two baths, a garage, and a small patio that costs me 1700 a month. My friend has an apartment the same size that costs her 1600. My niece lives in a 1200 square foot apartment/condo that costs her 2000 plus. She and her husband are working two jobs each, raising two children, and trying to survive. 

The price of everything has gone up. Where I could once afford to pay my bills, buy groceries, pay the rent/mortgage, go out to eat, and travel, now my travel and eating-out cash is spent on groceries and gas. Heaven forbid an emergency happens. 

If I could, I would go back to the 1980s and start all over again. I would save more money, get a degree, and actually study in college. I would invest in Amazon and Microsoft. (My idiot brother-in-law said they were bad investments. I knew I shouldn't have listened to him! Hindsight.) I would also change other things, but unfortunately, we cannot go back in time. We can only learn. 

And let's not get started on retirement! Do you know it could cost over four grand a month to live in a retirement home or assisted living facility! That's just for rent! Add in the monthly bills, groceries, and health care ... WTF? I am lucky to have some cash in my investments and retirement fund, but even still, that amount might--MIGHT--pay for one year if I am lucky. 

Sad to say, the American dream is now about whether or not we can afford to buy and pay for what we need. What we want ... now, that's a pipe dream. 

And before you blame one political party over the other, know this, they are BOTH screwing us over. But that's a different vent. ;)