How is everyone dealing with their finances in this economy?

[Sliver]

Originally Posted by Sliver

Yeah, I'm 100% happy being uninterested in who posters are behind their username and posts here, but opendoor has me soooo curious about his background, vocation, etc. Like, who the hell is so smart and articulate without talking over our heads on such a broad range of topics? I hope IRL he's killing it. Such a neat dude.

MBates would be up there as well.

And I see Photon thanked Zary's-Mustache's post about wishing he had the ability to make points like opendoor...Photon, you do! I recall you used to be more interested in talking about religion and such years ago, but man did you always nail really interesting points and were punching above the level of most of us on here.

BTW, not looking for actual info on him, just to be clear. I respect people's anonymity 100%, so no need to PM me or anything with inside scoops. I'm curious, but not enough to actually want to pry into who he is behind a username.

[topfiverecords]

Originally Posted by CliffFletcher

Nobody has said it cost nothing. But it costs considerably more now. This is pretty well substantiated. Bigger houses, higher day care costs, much more spent on sports and activities, saving for post-secondary eduction, fewer teens working jobs, more staying at home until their mid or late 20s. This isn’t anecdotal stuff. You can look it up.

GirlySports said it cost next to nothing, which I'd interpret as very nearly nothing, which couldn't be true with all the things I listed.

[topfiverecords]

Originally Posted by Sliver

BTW, not looking for actual info on him, just to be clear. I respect people's anonymity 100%, so no need to PM me or anything with inside scoops. I'm curious, but not enough to actually want to pry into who he is behind a username.

opendoor and sureLoss aren't human.

[V]

Originally Posted by CliffFletcher

There’s a reason fewer people are having kids - the societal expectations of what you need to provide them to be happy and successful are far higher than they used to be.

My 4 teenagers are living proof that ignoring those societal expectations and focusing on family time instead of stuff does not lead to miserable unsuccessful young adults.

I'm pretty convinced that meeting societal expectations actually leads to less happiness (both for the parents and the children) than more.

[Monahammer]

Originally Posted by V

I don’t want to derail the pylon pile-on, but on another note, I find it very interesting how offensive it seems to be to even bring up the idea of budgeting or cost management in this thread. It really shouldn’t be. To repeat Pepsi, if nothing else, budgeting provides incredible peace of mind. And secondly, while I appreciate folks believe they should be entitled to live a certain lifestyle if they work in a certain job, the simple fact is that sometimes you’re not, and cost management can open a lot of opportunities to make free money simply by cutting costs that are lower priority than others. Anyways, sorry if I offended, but I do like to evangelize budgeting, as offensive as it may be.

This 100%

Doing a budget seems daunting, but once you settle into it it becomes so routine and easy you honestly almost forget about it. Except you don't forget about it, because the benefits (lack of anxiety!) become so clear that you start becoming enamored with it.

My wife and I LOVE our budget and talking about it. It's perverse on a surface level but damn.

Most people here very likely do not need to make more money. Some do, I am not discounting that, but most probably just need to be more realistic with what they're spending on.

[surferguy]

Originally Posted by Sliver

BTW, not looking for actual info on him, just to be clear. I respect people's anonymity 100%, so no need to PM me or anything with inside scoops. I'm curious, but not enough to actually want to pry into who he is behind a username.

You shouldn’t have to pry anything because he’s…

















opendoor

[blankall]

Originally Posted by Cowboy89

I live in the US after moving from Calgary a year and a half ago and make frequent trips back to Calgary. Unequivocally now the cost of living is higher in Canada, especially when you factor in incomes and earning potential in the US. There are positives and negatives of both places and I think Canada has such a complex with the US that makes Canadians blind to anything that might actually be better in the US and also blinds them to things that are objectively awful in Canada.

A straight across comparison really isn't fair. The USA clearly has its faults including more poverty. However, it's also easier to live below the poverty line in the USA.

I'm trying to find accurate stats on homelessness, which is difficult as Canada does a really poor job of keeping them. From what I can gather, the homelessness rate in Canada is much higher than the USA. The USA reported 653,100 homeless people in 2023. Canada is estimated to have 200-300,000, but the USA's population is over 8 times larger.

As stated, these stats are probably not 100% reliable. Other indicators that often accompany homelessness, like the overdose death rate, are much higher in the USA.

Anyways, rambling right now, but the housing crisis is the main issue in Canada. A lot of posters on this board, being 40+ and living in Calgary, are on the benefitting side of the housing cost increases (IE they bought in before the major uptick in housing prices in their region).

This is almost certainly to be a major, if no the major issue, in the upcoming federal election. The liberals are trying to get ahead of it by putting forward their plan for 3.9 million more homes by 2031.

[activeStick]

I wonder how the next generation is going to purchase a home if they want to? With the prices being where they are now, the 20% minimum down payment and the cost of living just to survive these days being so high making it harder to save, I'm not sure how they'll do it. If they don't have parents (many who are also struggling) who can essentially give them money for a down payment, saving $100k minimum will be tough.

[Geraldsh]

I hate marketing gimmicks!
Superstore has 3-pack of lettuce on sale for $5.38 limit of two(=$10.76)
A 6-pack costs $9.99 regular price

[photon]

Ad from the 1996 New Yorker:


https://i.imgur.com/eJPOsTT.jpeg

[blankall]

Originally Posted by activeStick

I wonder how the next generation is going to purchase a home if they want to? With the prices being where they are now, the 20% minimum down payment and the cost of living just to survive these days being so high making it harder to save, I'm not sure how they'll do it. If they don't have parents (many who are also struggling) who can essentially give them money for a down payment, saving $100k minimum will be tough.

In Vancouver, it's almost exclusively people who get large lump sum help from their parents or investors who buy detached housing. Occasionally, a high earning professional, entrepreneur, or construction industry guy climbs the ladder into detached housing. It also helps if you bought a strata property 10+ years ago, that now has several thousands dollars of equity in it.

The same trend spread into Victoria and Kelowna. Calgary, due to their land abundance, can somewhat mitigate the trend but that's where it's headed, although to a less extreme extent.

[Barnet Flame]

Originally Posted by topfiverecords

When we were kids in the 80s none of us were in activities, needed furniture, bikes, hockey sticks and nets, went to the movies, went to sporting events, had birthday parties, got gifts, gave gifts, video game consoles, computers, ate food, or even wore clothes! Simpler times.

My paper route funded most of that. The biggest ticket item I had bought for me was the family ColecoVision. That was a great day.

[blankall]

Originally Posted by topfiverecords

When we were kids in the 80s none of us were in activities, needed furniture, bikes, hockey sticks and nets, went to the movies, went to sporting events, had birthday parties, got gifts, gave gifts, video game consoles, computers, ate food, or even wore clothes! Simpler times.

Coffee shops, bars, restaurants, and, most importantly, avocado didn't exist either. If university education workers would stop spending $200-400 per month on all these extra luxuries, they'd be able to afford to save several hundred thousand dollars for a down payment. Pretty simple.

[chedder]

Originally Posted by activeStick

I wonder how the next generation is going to purchase a home if they want to? With the prices being where they are now, the 20% minimum down payment and the cost of living just to survive these days being so high making it harder to save, I'm not sure how they'll do it. If they don't have parents (many who are also struggling) who can essentially give them money for a down payment, saving $100k minimum will be tough.

It is going to be tough but they don't need a 20% down payment. With mortgage insurance you can buy with as little as 5% down. Exactly the same as I did many moons ago.

I think you'll see a lot more condos and row houses as first homes which,in my opinion, is fine. Is that really any worse than my 750 square foot hundred year old dump that I bought as a first home?

[topfiverecords]

Originally Posted by photon

Ad from the 1996 New Yorker:


https://i.imgur.com/eJPOsTT.jpeg

Nice Fata Dion.

[cam_calderon]

Originally Posted by chedder

It is going to be tough but they don't need a 20% down payment. With mortgage insurance you can buy with as little as 5% down. Exactly the same as I did many moons ago.

I think you'll see a lot more condos and row houses as first homes which,in my opinion, is fine. Is that really any worse than my 750 square foot hundred year old dump that I bought as a first home?

No law against buying a modest place, especially as your first home. Younger people will have to buy within their means just as every previous generation did.

[undercoverbrother]

Originally Posted by CliffFletcher

GirlySports is saying that kids used to cost far less than they do now. Your kids are athletes. How much have you spent on league fees, camps, equipment, etc. compared with how much your parents spent on you at the same age?

Can't compare, but to be clear that isn't because they didn't want to it is because they didn't have the money to spend.

All our money went to housing, food, clothing.

They had no spare $$, I do.

[blankall]

Originally Posted by chedder

It is going to be tough but they don't need a 20% down payment. With mortgage insurance you can buy with as little as 5% down. Exactly the same as I did many moons ago.

Encouraging people to put less down, during a housing crunch with uncertain interest rates and a potential crash in the future is not a good idea. Buying a home shouldn't be as big of a risk as it is.

Originally Posted by chedder

I think you'll see a lot more condos and row houses as first homes which,in my opinion, is fine. Is that really any worse than my 750 square foot hundred year old dump that I bought as a first home?

Yes. Attached properties, generally, don't appreciate in value at the same rate as detaches ones. Making the jump from crappy house to nicer house is much easier than from attached unit to detached unit. Many Canadian cities lack adequate supply of liveable townhouses, aka the "Missing Middle".

[jayswin]

Originally Posted by blankall

A straight across comparison really isn't fair. The USA clearly has its faults including more poverty. However, it's also easier to live below the poverty line in the USA.

I'm trying to find accurate stats on homelessness, which is difficult as Canada does a really poor job of keeping them. From what I can gather, the homelessness rate in Canada is much higher than the USA. The USA reported 653,100 homeless people in 2023. Canada is estimated to have 200-300,000, but the USA's population is over 8 times larger.

As stated, these stats are probably not 100% reliable.

I can see where you got those stats, they were the first results on google, but you have to read what they're saying. It's not simply 235000 Canadians vs 653000 Americans. It looks like the 35000 Canadians vs 653000 Americans homeless is the correct comparison. Which is more in line with our populations. It was saying over the course of a year 235000 Canadians will be homeless at some point in time.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) counted 653,104 homeless Americans in its annual point-in-time report, which measures homelessness across the US on a single night each winter.

235,000 Canadians experience homelessness yearly, with up to 35,000 individuals experiencing homelessness on any night.

[blankall]

Originally Posted by cam_calderon

No law against buying a modest place, especially as your first home. Younger people will have to buy within their means just as every previous generation did.

The point is that what qualifies as "modest housing" has changed dramatically. Also what qualifies as "younger people" is changing dramatically. My parents bought their first detached house, a brand new build, well before the age of 30. That was the norm. Our entire neighbourhood was filled with people who'd done the same thing. All new families. That's far from the norm now. Pretending that it's just some thing that every generation has had to adjust to is straight up facetious.