We've saddled a whole generation of people who should be buying homes with mountains of student loan debt. And then we get tone deaf people my age and older complaining that these "kids" are living at home, not buying cars, not buying houses and not getting married. Then add in that the jobs that would normally be there for the 2/3 of people who don't go to college are either gone or disappearing and golly gee, I wonder why people in their 20's are not buying houses.

I hang out with people in their late 50's to early 70's who flat out do not get this. AT ALL. My dad got out of the Air Force and had people lined up offering him jobs. He got the equivalent of $45,000 a year, his health care was paid in full, the union gave him an education and his house cost less than 4/5 his yearly income. People in their 20's now are actually WORSE off buying a home. Forbes had an article a while back on how some 20-somethings are pissed that they cannot put down roots as they have to be mobile to chase jobs. They may work two years in Dallas, then three in Denver, then to Chicago before they are in a more stable employment. Can't do that if you have to unload a house every few years. Add in the new fact of life that if you want a raise you change companies instead of stick with a single company and grow with them.

I'm glad that I am not in my 20's now knowing what I do now. I'm also glad that I chose to move somewhere in the middle of the country where I can pay $350 a month for an 1100 square foot house on an acre, and yet that took a lifetime of hard work and sacrifice and some pure dumb luck to pull that one off. I wish the job situation out here was better so that more of you nice people would move out this way.