> In the 1970's in the US it was possible to own a house and support a family of 4 on a single income in the manufacturing sector. Modern expectations mean tha

> In the 1970's in the US it was possible to own a house and support a family of 4 on a single income in the manufacturing sector. Modern expectations mean that this isn't what people think it is. You also owned one car per family in the '70s; new houses often have to build two parking spaces. Housing prices were held down because public housing was still being built; today it's unmaintained and often torn down. Old houses were built on small lots; suburbs today require a quarter-acre. Colleges received way more public funding as a proportion of their income than they do today, and enrollment was lower. Housing has gone from subsidized to restricted and college has gone from subsidized to free-market while demand keeps rising. It's not surprising that the price increased. (And the protectionism lobby is now also the anti-housing lobby!)