How come that during the 1970s, most Americans could work a 40-hour week and own a house and car, support a family and put kids through college?

There are many expenses today that we feel are essential but didn’t used to exist. How much does a typical family now pay for cell phones, internet, streaming services, computers, etc? Total cost for that in the 1970s? One landline for a few bucks a month. We also love further from our jobs and families have two cars instead of one or zero and using public transportation. We want largest houses with more land instead of living close to each other in urban neighborhoods. We pay for child care instead of living close to family.

So yes, things like college have become crippling expensive (albeit with financial aid available). But it’s also heavily driven by societal change as well.