There is little evidence of an unaffordability of everyday expenses (beyond inflation) apart from housing costs. There are three underlying trends driving supe

There is little evidence of an unaffordability of everyday expenses (beyond inflation) apart from housing costs. There are three underlying trends driving super-inflation of housing costs are: a) House prices are correlated to what the maximum monthly mortgage a household is willing to pay in a geographic area. For most of developed world, the average household now has two income earners. b) The previous generation benefited greatly from the suburbanization of cities. Cheap land was converted into reasonably priced housing (subsidized by highway expansion). We've reached the point where this cheap land is now so far from the city center that the downsides (commute, job opportunities) exceed the cost savings. c) We are seeing large economic network effects in agglomerating around fewer large metros (ex: NYC, LA, Bay Area, Chicago, Houston, DFW, Atlanta, DC). These metros have not responded with sufficient housing construction or transportation infrastructure despite the continued growth in population.