Comment by tedggh

Usually you don’t buy a whole house when you are 25. You start with a small unit. My first condo was 700 sf which I sold for a good profit and use the money to pay for a bigger condo, about double the size. I then combined the profit of the second home with my wife’s profit from her house which was also small and together we got our first nice house just outside the city, about 15 min commute. We paid around 220 $/sf compared to 600 $/sf for a similar home in the city. Our house is 3X the size of the house I grew up in with my parents and 3 siblings, which was standard size for a middle income American family in the 80s. Not to mention the quality and amenities of our house is so much better than a house from the 80s. Yes houses are a lot more expensive today but only if you are buying in busy urban areas. If you dare to look in the suburbs you’ll find great homes which by square footage have not increased that much in the past 30-40 years after adjusting for inflation. In the city you are competing with everyone else wanting to be able to walk to their favorite brunch place. Cities also have crazy regulations that prevent building affordable homes.