Author Topic: Millenials success due to rich parents  (Read 27269 times)

TheGrimSqueaker

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #50 on: October 29, 2015, 04:21:07 PM »

I studied abroad in London for a year (UCL) and it was actually about 35% cheaper than my university at home, including living in a dorm and a meal plan. Even when you add in the money I spent traveling around Europe for five weeks, and the flights back and forth to Boston, it was still thousands of dollars less expensive.

That is if you are paying full price with no scholarships/grants/etc., so the math might work out differently for different people, but still... equivalent universities abroad are just not as expensive as they are in the US.

I'd venture to guess that tuition payers at most European universities are also not actively subsidizing multiple professional sport leagues or their cities' performing arts scene.

The American universities I've seen so far devote large amounts of their resources to preparing future pro athletes to play in the NFL and NBA. They provide income and training opportunities for future professional coaches for those for-profit teams and sports commentators for commercial news networks (the most highly paid people on campus generally include the football and basketball coaches). They also pay to build and maintain arenas, concert halls, and performing arts centers that are used chiefly by for-profit ventures such as traveling off-Broadway musical productions.

Although a very few universities have large endowment funds from well heeled alumni, and there are sometimes grants or city funding available, most educational institutions need to raise money every year. Very seldom does an athletics program, for example, pay for itself. Indeed, there are only about half a dozen universities where the athletics program not only pays for itself but funds other parts of the institution. The vast majority of the money in the vast majority of the schools comes from the students. In some schools, the students got so fed up paying an increasingly hefty "jock tax" for expensive athletics facilities they didn't get to use and special gyms they didn't get to work out in, the schools stopped breaking down how the funding was allocated and presented tuition in one unified fee.

MrStash2000

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #51 on: October 29, 2015, 04:58:16 PM »

I studied abroad in London for a year (UCL) and it was actually about 35% cheaper than my university at home, including living in a dorm and a meal plan. Even when you add in the money I spent traveling around Europe for five weeks, and the flights back and forth to Boston, it was still thousands of dollars less expensive.

That is if you are paying full price with no scholarships/grants/etc., so the math might work out differently for different people, but still... equivalent universities abroad are just not as expensive as they are in the US.

I'd venture to guess that tuition payers at most European universities are also not actively subsidizing multiple professional sport leagues or their cities' performing arts scene.

The American universities I've seen so far devote large amounts of their resources to preparing future pro athletes to play in the NFL and NBA. They provide income and training opportunities for future professional coaches for those for-profit teams and sports commentators for commercial news networks (the most highly paid people on campus generally include the football and basketball coaches). They also pay to build and maintain arenas, concert halls, and performing arts centers that are used chiefly by for-profit ventures such as traveling off-Broadway musical productions.

Although a very few universities have large endowment funds from well heeled alumni, and there are sometimes grants or city funding available, most educational institutions need to raise money every year. Very seldom does an athletics program, for example, pay for itself. Indeed, there are only about half a dozen universities where the athletics program not only pays for itself but funds other parts of the institution. The vast majority of the money in the vast majority of the schools comes from the students. In some schools, the students got so fed up paying an increasingly hefty "jock tax" for expensive athletics facilities they didn't get to use and special gyms they didn't get to work out in, the schools stopped breaking down how the funding was allocated and presented tuition in one unified fee.

AMEN

Our universities are basically the minor leagues for the NBA and the NFL.

astvilla

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #52 on: October 29, 2015, 08:58:59 PM »
I don't make much and I'm still in school.  Yet I'm near 90K and I have a really good savings rate going on being in my mid-20s.

I think my financial stability was me stumbling on this site.  Also my parents being Asian, paid for my entire education.  If I was like many other Americans, I'd be drowning in student debt, not even breaking even.  So in a way, that sets me years, decades ahead of others. 

Student loans are a real killer that millennials my age have to face that no one else does.  Not to mention a changing job landscape.  During the baby boomer years, post WWII, you could get a job anywhere w/journalism.  Now...well...you know it's a useless degree.  How many journalism majors are there?

But student loans are the real killer and drain.  So I do agree that the chance for being successful improves dramatically if you had parents to help pay tuition, room, board. 

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #53 on: October 29, 2015, 09:25:17 PM »
The American universities I've seen so far devote large amounts of their resources to preparing future pro athletes to play in the NFL and NBA. They provide income and training opportunities for future professional coaches for those for-profit teams and sports commentators for commercial news networks (the most highly paid people on campus generally include the football and basketball coaches). They also pay to build and maintain arenas, concert halls, and performing arts centers that are used chiefly by for-profit ventures such as traveling off-Broadway musical productions.

Some big schools are like this, but a lot aren't, and most of the smaller ones aren't. I went to a university that had no football team at all. Sports weren't a big focus and they didn't have high-end arenas/venues. Current cost is right around $65k/yr in spite of that... when I went in the 90s it was more like $30k/yr and the school I went to in London was $18k/yr. (Which in retrospect is probably less than the rent on a studio apartment would have been in that part of London... it's like I rented a really shitty apartment and got free tuition and a meal plan! Somehow that makes me feel better about the complete uselessness of the classes I took that year...)

JR

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #54 on: October 30, 2015, 08:42:23 AM »

I studied abroad in London for a year (UCL) and it was actually about 35% cheaper than my university at home, including living in a dorm and a meal plan. Even when you add in the money I spent traveling around Europe for five weeks, and the flights back and forth to Boston, it was still thousands of dollars less expensive.

That is if you are paying full price with no scholarships/grants/etc., so the math might work out differently for different people, but still... equivalent universities abroad are just not as expensive as they are in the US.

I'd venture to guess that tuition payers at most European universities are also not actively subsidizing multiple professional sport leagues or their cities' performing arts scene.

The American universities I've seen so far devote large amounts of their resources to preparing future pro athletes to play in the NFL and NBA. They provide income and training opportunities for future professional coaches for those for-profit teams and sports commentators for commercial news networks (the most highly paid people on campus generally include the football and basketball coaches). They also pay to build and maintain arenas, concert halls, and performing arts centers that are used chiefly by for-profit ventures such as traveling off-Broadway musical productions.

Although a very few universities have large endowment funds from well heeled alumni, and there are sometimes grants or city funding available, most educational institutions need to raise money every year. Very seldom does an athletics program, for example, pay for itself. Indeed, there are only about half a dozen universities where the athletics program not only pays for itself but funds other parts of the institution. The vast majority of the money in the vast majority of the schools comes from the students. In some schools, the students got so fed up paying an increasingly hefty "jock tax" for expensive athletics facilities they didn't get to use and special gyms they didn't get to work out in, the schools stopped breaking down how the funding was allocated and presented tuition in one unified fee.

I know in the case of the school I attended (Penn State) the football program brought in so much revenue that it paid all of it's expenses as well as funded most of the less popular athletic programs. I would imagine this is true at a lot of universities with popular football programs.

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #55 on: October 31, 2015, 06:58:48 PM »
I think we have had this on the forum before. 

I am a baby boomer - but when I graduated university, a lot of us went to grad school because there were so few jobs for us.  Think about it, the early boomers were scarce and there were jobs, but we flooded the job market.

University - things have changed, yes.  But when I was a student, walking 20 km uphill each way to class (but in the slush, not blizzard, Kingston, meh) we all had no money and made our own fun for cheap.  And looked like our clothes would fall apart any moment.  The hippie look was a big help.  We all tried to get summer jobs at home so we could save like mad each summer for school expenses.  That, or once we were living out of residence, get a job where university was so we were not stuck paying rent on an unoccupied apartment.

Seriously, when I was teaching we used to joke that we could dress for a year on what our students spent in a month - the students were so much better dressed than the faculty.  And their laptops were fancier than ours.  Not to mention cell phones.

Student loans are a real killer that millennials my age have to face that no one else does.  Not to mention a changing job landscape.  During the baby boomer years, post WWII, you could get a job anywhere w/journalism.  Now...well...you know it's a useless degree.  How many journalism majors are there?

But student loans are the real killer and drain.  So I do agree that the chance for being successful improves dramatically if you had parents to help pay tuition, room, board.

TheGrimSqueaker

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #56 on: October 31, 2015, 09:40:39 PM »

I studied abroad in London for a year (UCL) and it was actually about 35% cheaper than my university at home, including living in a dorm and a meal plan. Even when you add in the money I spent traveling around Europe for five weeks, and the flights back and forth to Boston, it was still thousands of dollars less expensive.

That is if you are paying full price with no scholarships/grants/etc., so the math might work out differently for different people, but still... equivalent universities abroad are just not as expensive as they are in the US.

I'd venture to guess that tuition payers at most European universities are also not actively subsidizing multiple professional sport leagues or their cities' performing arts scene.

The American universities I've seen so far devote large amounts of their resources to preparing future pro athletes to play in the NFL and NBA. They provide income and training opportunities for future professional coaches for those for-profit teams and sports commentators for commercial news networks (the most highly paid people on campus generally include the football and basketball coaches). They also pay to build and maintain arenas, concert halls, and performing arts centers that are used chiefly by for-profit ventures such as traveling off-Broadway musical productions.

Although a very few universities have large endowment funds from well heeled alumni, and there are sometimes grants or city funding available, most educational institutions need to raise money every year. Very seldom does an athletics program, for example, pay for itself. Indeed, there are only about half a dozen universities where the athletics program not only pays for itself but funds other parts of the institution. The vast majority of the money in the vast majority of the schools comes from the students. In some schools, the students got so fed up paying an increasingly hefty "jock tax" for expensive athletics facilities they didn't get to use and special gyms they didn't get to work out in, the schools stopped breaking down how the funding was allocated and presented tuition in one unified fee.

I know in the case of the school I attended (Penn State) the football program brought in so much revenue that it paid all of it's expenses as well as funded most of the less popular athletic programs. I would imagine this is true at a lot of universities with popular football programs.

Which might, possibly, come close to taking care of the athletics department and all its associated buildings, maintenance and groundskeeping. I'm not sure what the layout of the Penn State campus is like or whether the costs of maintaining those buildings is factored into the department revenue, or whether it's budgeted for separately. Many schools hide maintenance costs related to the expensive buildings by classifying maintenance as a separate budget item.

Athletics isn't the only expensive problem child a university can have. I notice that Penn State also has the impressive Eisenhower auditorium in addition to a theatre building and Esber recital hall. Do the annual student productions draw in enough revenue to cover all three buildings and the cost of the fine arts department, or is the school subsidizing them like the other campuses I've seen?

None of New Mexico's universities-- for example-- get enough revenue from athletic programs to consistently cover the athletics program costs. Same goes for fine arts. But for-profit ventures sure benefit from having access to the facilities. I'd actually like to see the professional sports association and the for-profit teams turn around and start actually funding some of the programs they benefit from, instead of just skimming the cream.

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #57 on: February 14, 2016, 08:57:02 PM »
Ha, I know right?  The sad (?) realism of the thing - it's a 2BR, 1 BA, 1100 sf house with no garage, built in 1947 (with a driveway to a house in the back, owned by someone else), on a 5227 sq foot lot (much of which is not "usable" because of said driveway).  Almost the bottom of the single family home market in this town, though some older homes are only 850-1000sf.  But it's Coastal Southern California.  As I explained to my FIL when we bought the house: "Just think of it as a $188k house on a $600k piece of land".

A lot of that cost was having the down payment tied up, plus prop tax, plus upkeep, plus just the cost of the mortgage (which was $3800 a month when we bought it - NOT INCLUDING PROP TAX OF $8000 a year), rent would have been $2k back then).


You described our first house. $58K with taxes of about $400 a year. We sold a few years later and broke even after a new HVAC system and carpet.
« Last Edit: February 24, 2016, 10:36:15 AM by Jethrosnose »

SwordGuy

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #58 on: February 14, 2016, 09:25:24 PM »
Every report, news article and study I ever see points to Student Loan debt as being the primary factor that keeps Millenials from investing. 

And I really, really do not understand that. 

The median student loan debt is several thousand dollars LESS than the median new car price!

Most should be able to save and invest "just fine" if they set their minds to it.

FIRE_Buckeye

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #59 on: February 14, 2016, 10:35:40 PM »
Every report, news article and study I ever see points to Student Loan debt as being the primary factor that keeps Millenials from investing. 

And I really, really do not understand that. 

The median student loan debt is several thousand dollars LESS than the median new car price!

Most should be able to save and invest "just fine" if they set their minds to it.
Most news articles and studies are written by clueless people.
The primary reason most millennials either don't invest or under-invest is their complete ignorance when it comes to investing. Most of my high school friends who fall into that category literally just hoard cash in their checking accounts. Being gun-shy due to the '08 crash, unchecked spending, and high student loans are other lesser contributing factor.s

MgoSam

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #60 on: March 03, 2016, 03:57:02 PM »
I'm not refuting that sensible decisions (choosing a major that will pay the bills, ect) help lead to success, but I can't discount having "rich" parents.

I don't know as much about the rich part, but we can't excuse how much of life is networking and having influential parents can help direct you in the right direction. There's a great comic I like.

http://thewireless.co.nz/articles/the-pencilsword-on-a-plate

In my personal case, I was able to make some stupid decisions that would have crippled some other people. For instance, I went to a public school that was out of state, so I had to pay full tuition. I'm Indian, and my parents saved for my education as well as my siblings because that was a goal they had (neither went to college). I graduated during the recession and I found it hard to get a job, but was able to move back home to save money. After working on my own for a year, my dad asked me to join his company. 4 years later I am running the company (my dad's still controls the company, but he has been decreasing his hours).

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #61 on: March 04, 2016, 02:25:16 AM »
That is a good comic, mgo. Thanks for linking it.
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Zikoris

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #62 on: March 04, 2016, 10:23:09 AM »
Meh. I'm not saying that it's not an advantage to be born into wealth, but I think the world has changed enough that in Western society you have a lot of options regardless. My boyfriend is from a wealthy background and it has yet to be of much benefit - he's certainly never been able to leverage that into jobs or anything. His background actually meant he had developed a lot of bad habits that he needed to break, like eating out frequently. My working-class background has benefited both of us so much more, because I've always had useful skills like cooking, repairing things, finding jobs, and general self-reliance stuff.

One comment about the comic - if both of Paula's parents are working two jobs, and working enough hours that she rarely see them, even at minimum wage they would make enough to not live in a health-hazard place that makes their kids sick. The story would change completely if her parents were Mustachian. She would have grown up in reasonable comfort, learned a lot of self reliance skills, and gone on to a comfortable adulthood.

Paul der Krake

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #63 on: March 04, 2016, 10:49:36 AM »
I studied abroad in London for a year (UCL) and it was actually about 35% cheaper than my university at home, including living in a dorm and a meal plan. Even when you add in the money I spent traveling around Europe for five weeks, and the flights back and forth to Boston, it was still thousands of dollars less expensive.

That is if you are paying full price with no scholarships/grants/etc., so the math might work out differently for different people, but still... equivalent universities abroad are just not as expensive as they are in the US.
UCL alum here. Thank you for paying international tuition rates. :)

mm1970

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #64 on: March 04, 2016, 10:57:37 AM »
Quote
One comment about the comic - if both of Paula's parents are working two jobs, and working enough hours that she rarely see them, even at minimum wage they would make enough to not live in a health-hazard place that makes their kids sick. The story would change completely if her parents were Mustachian. She would have grown up in reasonable comfort, learned a lot of self reliance skills, and gone on to a comfortable adulthood.

Not necessarily.  This will GREATLY depend on where you live. HCOL?  Not so much.

Zikoris

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #65 on: March 04, 2016, 11:37:38 AM »
Quote
One comment about the comic - if both of Paula's parents are working two jobs, and working enough hours that she rarely see them, even at minimum wage they would make enough to not live in a health-hazard place that makes their kids sick. The story would change completely if her parents were Mustachian. She would have grown up in reasonable comfort, learned a lot of self reliance skills, and gone on to a comfortable adulthood.

Not necessarily.  This will GREATLY depend on where you live. HCOL?  Not so much.

Well, if you're going to work at Walmart, why live in a HCOL? And in any case, I bet there are tons of Mustachians in every HCOL in America who spend less than minimum wage and live comfortably.

mtn

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #66 on: March 04, 2016, 11:43:42 AM »
Successful millennial here. I'm successful thanks to my parents. No, not because they're rich (they might be, depending on your threshold), but because they instilled in me the same will and determination to succeed, both in work and life.

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #67 on: March 04, 2016, 11:44:14 AM »
I studied abroad in London for a year (UCL) and it was actually about 35% cheaper than my university at home, including living in a dorm and a meal plan. Even when you add in the money I spent traveling around Europe for five weeks, and the flights back and forth to Boston, it was still thousands of dollars less expensive.

That is if you are paying full price with no scholarships/grants/etc., so the math might work out differently for different people, but still... equivalent universities abroad are just not as expensive as they are in the US.
UCL alum here. Thank you for paying international tuition rates. :)

:-P You're welcome.

I remember when I was there (1998) all the UK students were bitching about how there was some new rule (or proposed rule) that they would have to pay 1000 GBP annually to attend university in the future (instead of it being free), and how could anyone possibly afford that, etc. There were only, what, 20 weeks of classes all year? And they couldn't come up with 1000 GBP during the other 32 weeks!? That was hard to swallow when I was paying the equivalent of a full-time, full-year job's salary to attend.

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #68 on: March 04, 2016, 11:54:25 AM »
I studied abroad in London for a year (UCL) and it was actually about 35% cheaper than my university at home, including living in a dorm and a meal plan. Even when you add in the money I spent traveling around Europe for five weeks, and the flights back and forth to Boston, it was still thousands of dollars less expensive.

That is if you are paying full price with no scholarships/grants/etc., so the math might work out differently for different people, but still... equivalent universities abroad are just not as expensive as they are in the US.
UCL alum here. Thank you for paying international tuition rates. :)

:-P You're welcome.

I remember when I was there (1998) all the UK students were bitching about how there was some new rule (or proposed rule) that they would have to pay 1000 GBP annually to attend university in the future (instead of it being free), and how could anyone possibly afford that, etc. There were only, what, 20 weeks of classes all year? And they couldn't come up with 1000 GBP during the other 32 weeks!? That was hard to swallow when I was paying the equivalent of a full-time, full-year job's salary to attend.
Blast from the past! I was there a decade after you, tuition for UK students during my time was 3,000 GBP, 10,000 GBP for Americans international students. It's ballooned to 9,000 GBP for UK students recently, and I'm too afraid to look at the price for international students. Madness.

nobody123

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #69 on: March 04, 2016, 12:09:58 PM »
Quote
One comment about the comic - if both of Paula's parents are working two jobs, and working enough hours that she rarely see them, even at minimum wage they would make enough to not live in a health-hazard place that makes their kids sick. The story would change completely if her parents were Mustachian. She would have grown up in reasonable comfort, learned a lot of self reliance skills, and gone on to a comfortable adulthood.

Not necessarily.  This will GREATLY depend on where you live. HCOL?  Not so much.

Well, if you're going to work at Walmart, why live in a HCOL? And in any case, I bet there are tons of Mustachians in every HCOL in America who spend less than minimum wage and live comfortably.

Because your elderly parents live there and you have to take care of them as well?  Because you don't have the extra cash to travel to a LCOL area to secure a job prior to quitting their existing job?  There are lots of reasons why minimum wage earners don't flock to LCOL areas.

Yes, you can live a mustachian lifestyle in a HCOL area, but that is a lot easier to do when you have the ability to absorb financial hurdles.  An unexpected car repair to the mustachian just means they save a little less that month, but for lower income folks it might mean having to rack up debt or having to skip a few meals.

I think the comic illustrates the basic point that "equal opportunity" doesn't exist in any real sense.  Assuming both children were born with the same intelligence level and physical ability, the lesser privileged child would have to be exposed to privilege at a young age to even be aware that they are disadvantaged.  Then, they need to have the mental maturity and perseverance to make choices to give themselves a chance to escape their current situation and improve their long term prospects, which will fly in the face of what their environment's "normal" is.  The lesser child will need an incredible amount of luck to be able to rise to the same level as the more privileged child given the same amount of personal effort invested.  Whether society has the obligation, resources, or ability to even the playing field is subject to debate.

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #70 on: March 04, 2016, 12:54:11 PM »
Quote
One comment about the comic - if both of Paula's parents are working two jobs, and working enough hours that she rarely see them, even at minimum wage they would make enough to not live in a health-hazard place that makes their kids sick. The story would change completely if her parents were Mustachian. She would have grown up in reasonable comfort, learned a lot of self reliance skills, and gone on to a comfortable adulthood.

Not necessarily.  This will GREATLY depend on where you live. HCOL?  Not so much.

Well, if you're going to work at Walmart, why live in a HCOL? And in any case, I bet there are tons of Mustachians in every HCOL in America who spend less than minimum wage and live comfortably.

Because your elderly parents live there and you have to take care of them as well?  Because you don't have the extra cash to travel to a LCOL area to secure a job prior to quitting their existing job?  There are lots of reasons why minimum wage earners don't flock to LCOL areas.

Yes, you can live a mustachian lifestyle in a HCOL area, but that is a lot easier to do when you have the ability to absorb financial hurdles.  An unexpected car repair to the mustachian just means they save a little less that month, but for lower income folks it might mean having to rack up debt or having to skip a few meals.

I think the comic illustrates the basic point that "equal opportunity" doesn't exist in any real sense.  Assuming both children were born with the same intelligence level and physical ability, the lesser privileged child would have to be exposed to privilege at a young age to even be aware that they are disadvantaged.  Then, they need to have the mental maturity and perseverance to make choices to give themselves a chance to escape their current situation and improve their long term prospects, which will fly in the face of what their environment's "normal" is.  The lesser child will need an incredible amount of luck to be able to rise to the same level as the more privileged child given the same amount of personal effort invested.  Whether society has the obligation, resources, or ability to even the playing field is subject to debate.

Well, maybe the elderly parents need to be realistic and move as well, and recognize that insisting their adult children stay in a HCOL area to take care of them is greatly harming their grandchildren? What sort of terrible grandparents would voluntarily choose to have their grandchildren grow up sick all the time from living in a health-hazard dump?

Can the parents really never manage to save up enough for ONE move over the course of 18-20 years, despite working FOUR JOBS between the two of them? That seems absolutely ludicrous.

I get what the comic is saying, but I think the personal choices available to everyone can bridge so much of the gap.

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #71 on: March 04, 2016, 12:57:17 PM »
Quote
One comment about the comic - if both of Paula's parents are working two jobs, and working enough hours that she rarely see them, even at minimum wage they would make enough to not live in a health-hazard place that makes their kids sick. The story would change completely if her parents were Mustachian. She would have grown up in reasonable comfort, learned a lot of self reliance skills, and gone on to a comfortable adulthood.

Not necessarily.  This will GREATLY depend on where you live. HCOL?  Not so much.

Well, if you're going to work at Walmart, why live in a HCOL? And in any case, I bet there are tons of Mustachians in every HCOL in America who spend less than minimum wage and live comfortably.
Where did you grow up?  Where does your family live? 

Do you have the ability to move?  Do you even have a car, money to change locations, ability to put first/last months rent in a new location?
Do you have childcare?  If you move, are you giving up free childcare (sibling, parents?)  Does it make sense to move?

Rent on a 2BR apartment starts at $2400 a month.

Let's say 2 people make minimum wage and manage to get 50 hours a week between two jobs a piece (a pipe dream, really).  That's still not much money.

When you make a comment like: "even at minimum wage they would make enough to not live in a health-hazard place that makes their kids sick" you are greatly simplifying the issue and applying your own personal experience filter.

By the way that $2400 a month apartment in my town would be a sh*thole in a bad neighborhood, likely poorly maintained (leaky roof, mold, etc.)

Then again, a fair number of minimum wage workers and families in my town are homeless, including kids who attend my son's school.

Zikoris

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #72 on: March 04, 2016, 01:06:48 PM »
Quote
One comment about the comic - if both of Paula's parents are working two jobs, and working enough hours that she rarely see them, even at minimum wage they would make enough to not live in a health-hazard place that makes their kids sick. The story would change completely if her parents were Mustachian. She would have grown up in reasonable comfort, learned a lot of self reliance skills, and gone on to a comfortable adulthood.

Not necessarily.  This will GREATLY depend on where you live. HCOL?  Not so much.

Well, if you're going to work at Walmart, why live in a HCOL? And in any case, I bet there are tons of Mustachians in every HCOL in America who spend less than minimum wage and live comfortably.
Where did you grow up?  Where does your family live? 

Do you have the ability to move?  Do you even have a car, money to change locations, ability to put first/last months rent in a new location?
Do you have childcare?  If you move, are you giving up free childcare (sibling, parents?)  Does it make sense to move?

Rent on a 2BR apartment starts at $2400 a month.

Let's say 2 people make minimum wage and manage to get 50 hours a week between two jobs a piece (a pipe dream, really).  That's still not much money.

When you make a comment like: "even at minimum wage they would make enough to not live in a health-hazard place that makes their kids sick" you are greatly simplifying the issue and applying your own personal experience filter.

By the way that $2400 a month apartment in my town would be a sh*thole in a bad neighborhood, likely poorly maintained (leaky roof, mold, etc.)

Then again, a fair number of minimum wage workers and families in my town are homeless, including kids who attend my son's school.

Even if the place is $2400, there are apparently a bunch of other people living with them, so they wouldn't be paying that full amount unless they're also suckers on top of making bad financial decisions. I know people are bad at saving, but do you really think that a family with two adults working four jobs could not reasonably save up enough to pay for ONE MOVE over 18-20 years? Even if they put it all on a credit card, they would literally break even on the moving costs within months.

nobody123

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #73 on: March 04, 2016, 01:29:19 PM »
Well, maybe the elderly parents need to be realistic and move as well, and recognize that insisting their adult children stay in a HCOL area to take care of them is greatly harming their grandchildren? What sort of terrible grandparents would voluntarily choose to have their grandchildren grow up sick all the time from living in a health-hazard dump?

Can the parents really never manage to save up enough for ONE move over the course of 18-20 years, despite working FOUR JOBS between the two of them? That seems absolutely ludicrous.

I get what the comic is saying, but I think the personal choices available to everyone can bridge so much of the gap.

Perhaps the elderly parents have Alzheimer's and are therefore not capable of handling their own affairs.  Perhaps they immigrated to the US and worked menial jobs just to give their kids a chance at a better life, and now the kids aren't soulless jerks willing to abandon their parents because they are an inconvenient burden.

I suppose it is possible that over the course of 18 years the family might not have a single unforeseen misfortune affect their financial plans so they can move.

I agree that there are numerous personal choices that affect the outcome, but the validity of the options are going to vary because of each individual's circumstances.  If a teenager in high school can't earn money to attend college because they have to play "mom" to their younger siblings while their single parent is working two jobs to put food on the table, are you going to blame that teenager for not doing what is in their best interest?  Did that teenager really have an option to abandon their siblings to get money for college?





nobody123

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #74 on: March 04, 2016, 01:32:20 PM »
Even if they put it all on a credit card, they would literally break even on the moving costs within months.

These folks most likely don't have a checking account, let alone a credit card.  Most likely they would have to take out a payday loan to finance the job hunting trip.  Should they risk that cycle of debt for a potential move?

Zikoris

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #75 on: March 04, 2016, 01:44:45 PM »
Well, maybe the elderly parents need to be realistic and move as well, and recognize that insisting their adult children stay in a HCOL area to take care of them is greatly harming their grandchildren? What sort of terrible grandparents would voluntarily choose to have their grandchildren grow up sick all the time from living in a health-hazard dump?

Can the parents really never manage to save up enough for ONE move over the course of 18-20 years, despite working FOUR JOBS between the two of them? That seems absolutely ludicrous.

I get what the comic is saying, but I think the personal choices available to everyone can bridge so much of the gap.

Perhaps the elderly parents have Alzheimer's and are therefore not capable of handling their own affairs.  Perhaps they immigrated to the US and worked menial jobs just to give their kids a chance at a better life, and now the kids aren't soulless jerks willing to abandon their parents because they are an inconvenient burden.

I suppose it is possible that over the course of 18 years the family might not have a single unforeseen misfortune affect their financial plans so they can move.

I agree that there are numerous personal choices that affect the outcome, but the validity of the options are going to vary because of each individual's circumstances.  If a teenager in high school can't earn money to attend college because they have to play "mom" to their younger siblings while their single parent is working two jobs to put food on the table, are you going to blame that teenager for not doing what is in their best interest?  Did that teenager really have an option to abandon their siblings to get money for college?

So people with Alzheimer's are incapable of moving to LCOL areas, with the help of their adult children who are also moving there? Who said anything about abandoning them? I said they should be realistic about the options and willing to move somewhere cheaper if they really need their kids to take care of them.

So you honestly believe that it's unreasonable to expect a family or two adults with four jobs, working 100+ hours a week between them, to save up a couple thousand over the course of 18-20 years? You honestly believe it would take 18 years of never having a single misfortune for this miraculous thing to happen? That's... amazing.

Quote
These folks most likely don't have a checking account, let alone a credit card.  Most likely they would have to take out a payday loan to finance the job hunting trip.  Should they risk that cycle of debt for a potential move?

If you're moving from somewhere that's $2400 rent to somewhere that's $700 rent, and you're pretty much guaranteed to find work at Walmart/restaurants/gas stations/etc given that you're only looking for minimum wage, HELL YES, just go, don't bother with a "job hunting trip", just MOVE. That would be a completely reasonable scenario to go into small debt for.

nobody123

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #76 on: March 04, 2016, 02:39:20 PM »
Well, maybe the elderly parents need to be realistic and move as well, and recognize that insisting their adult children stay in a HCOL area to take care of them is greatly harming their grandchildren? What sort of terrible grandparents would voluntarily choose to have their grandchildren grow up sick all the time from living in a health-hazard dump?

Can the parents really never manage to save up enough for ONE move over the course of 18-20 years, despite working FOUR JOBS between the two of them? That seems absolutely ludicrous.

I get what the comic is saying, but I think the personal choices available to everyone can bridge so much of the gap.

Perhaps the elderly parents have Alzheimer's and are therefore not capable of handling their own affairs.  Perhaps they immigrated to the US and worked menial jobs just to give their kids a chance at a better life, and now the kids aren't soulless jerks willing to abandon their parents because they are an inconvenient burden.

I suppose it is possible that over the course of 18 years the family might not have a single unforeseen misfortune affect their financial plans so they can move.

I agree that there are numerous personal choices that affect the outcome, but the validity of the options are going to vary because of each individual's circumstances.  If a teenager in high school can't earn money to attend college because they have to play "mom" to their younger siblings while their single parent is working two jobs to put food on the table, are you going to blame that teenager for not doing what is in their best interest?  Did that teenager really have an option to abandon their siblings to get money for college?

So people with Alzheimer's are incapable of moving to LCOL areas, with the help of their adult children who are also moving there? Who said anything about abandoning them? I said they should be realistic about the options and willing to move somewhere cheaper if they really need their kids to take care of them.

So you honestly believe that it's unreasonable to expect a family or two adults with four jobs, working 100+ hours a week between them, to save up a couple thousand over the course of 18-20 years? You honestly believe it would take 18 years of never having a single misfortune for this miraculous thing to happen? That's... amazing.

Quote
These folks most likely don't have a checking account, let alone a credit card.  Most likely they would have to take out a payday loan to finance the job hunting trip.  Should they risk that cycle of debt for a potential move?

If you're moving from somewhere that's $2400 rent to somewhere that's $700 rent, and you're pretty much guaranteed to find work at Walmart/restaurants/gas stations/etc given that you're only looking for minimum wage, HELL YES, just go, don't bother with a "job hunting trip", just MOVE. That would be a completely reasonable scenario to go into small debt for.

Let's say the 4 children of the Alzheimer-stricken grandparents split the responsibilities as caregiver.  Should our 100 hour workers force all of the families to move so they can save some money?

I am guessing they aren't working 100 hours a week because they like their jobs and hate spending time with their kids.  There is no extra money to save.  Because there is no extra money, taking a risk such as giving up 4 jobs for the hope of 4 equally crappy ones with enough scheduling flexibility to allow the 4 jobs to coexist while moving hundreds of miles away from their friends and family (their support system) is a ridiculous notion.  I don't understand why that is so difficult for you to understand.

We can argue for days and we'll never change each other's mind.  I'm going to let it drop at this point.

Zikoris

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #77 on: March 04, 2016, 02:49:55 PM »
Let's say the 4 children of the Alzheimer-stricken grandparents split the responsibilities as caregiver.  Should our 100 hour workers force all of the families to move so they can save some money?

I am guessing they aren't working 100 hours a week because they like their jobs and hate spending time with their kids.  There is no extra money to save.  Because there is no extra money, taking a risk such as giving up 4 jobs for the hope of 4 equally crappy ones with enough scheduling flexibility to allow the 4 jobs to coexist while moving hundreds of miles away from their friends and family (their support system) is a ridiculous notion.  I don't understand why that is so difficult for you to understand.

We can argue for days and we'll never change each other's mind.  I'm going to let it drop at this point.

But you have to compare it to the alternative of staying where they are - financial ruin, major health problems, ruining their own and their kids lives, continuing the cycle of poverty, basically an all-around disaster shit-fest. It doesn't get worse than that. You're already at the bottom. Any change you make will improve your situation.

There is extra money. There's no way for that not to be the case at 100 hours a week in the united states on ANY legal wage, given the lifestyle that they live (dumpy shared home, etc) It's just a question of what it's being spent on.

Discussions on this sort of thing sure demonstrate the glaring differences between people with an external and internal locus of control.

nobody123

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #78 on: March 04, 2016, 03:06:38 PM »
But you have to compare it to the alternative of staying where they are - financial ruin, major health problems, ruining their own and their kids lives, continuing the cycle of poverty, basically an all-around disaster shit-fest. It doesn't get worse than that. You're already at the bottom. Any change you make will improve your situation.

There is extra money. There's no way for that not to be the case at 100 hours a week in the united states on ANY legal wage, given the lifestyle that they live (dumpy shared home, etc) It's just a question of what it's being spent on.

Discussions on this sort of thing sure demonstrate the glaring differences between people with an external and internal locus of control.

I actually agree with this!  They know they are in a crappy situation, but the cycle of poverty is all they know, and trying to break it given that their environment says it is normal is EXTREMELY difficult.  From the outside looking at it, the "correct" choices seem obvious.  But folks who escape the cycle are too few and far between to provide adequate evidence that the "correct" choices will actually work. 



Papa Mustache

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #79 on: March 06, 2016, 10:22:08 AM »
Quote
One comment about the comic - if both of Paula's parents are working two jobs, and working enough hours that she rarely see them, even at minimum wage they would make enough to not live in a health-hazard place that makes their kids sick. The story would change completely if her parents were Mustachian. She would have grown up in reasonable comfort, learned a lot of self reliance skills, and gone on to a comfortable adulthood.

Not necessarily.  This will GREATLY depend on where you live. HCOL?  Not so much.

Well, if you're going to work at Walmart, why live in a HCOL? And in any case, I bet there are tons of Mustachians in every HCOL in America who spend less than minimum wage and live comfortably.
Where did you grow up?  Where does your family live? 

Do you have the ability to move?  Do you even have a car, money to change locations, ability to put first/last months rent in a new location?
Do you have childcare?  If you move, are you giving up free childcare (sibling, parents?)  Does it make sense to move?

Rent on a 2BR apartment starts at $2400 a month.

Let's say 2 people make minimum wage and manage to get 50 hours a week between two jobs a piece (a pipe dream, really).  That's still not much money.

When you make a comment like: "even at minimum wage they would make enough to not live in a health-hazard place that makes their kids sick" you are greatly simplifying the issue and applying your own personal experience filter.

By the way that $2400 a month apartment in my town would be a sh*thole in a bad neighborhood, likely poorly maintained (leaky roof, mold, etc.)

Then again, a fair number of minimum wage workers and families in my town are homeless, including kids who attend my son's school.

Even if the place is $2400, there are apparently a bunch of other people living with them, so they wouldn't be paying that full amount unless they're also suckers on top of making bad financial decisions. I know people are bad at saving, but do you really think that a family with two adults working four jobs could not reasonably save up enough to pay for ONE MOVE over 18-20 years? Even if they put it all on a credit card, they would literally break even on the moving costs within months.

I know a number of families in my town who are "married" to this place. They'll struggle financially but they won't leave this place b/c everyone they have ever known lives here.

bacchi

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #80 on: March 06, 2016, 11:01:57 AM »
There's plenty of evidence to suggest that Paula's (and her parents', and her grandparents') childhood experiences encourage lifelong health problems. Childhood stress actually affects neural connections and increases the risk of heart disease and diabetes (so Paula visiting the hospital for her over-worked, stressed, dad isn't far-fetched).

Quote from: fivethirtyeight
Brain scans for children who have experienced a lot of trauma suggest that the neural connections in the parts of the brain responsible for reasoning and learning are weakened. That leads to problems with decision-making, impulse control and memory.
(emphasis added)

https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/flint-has-a-chance-to-improve-more-than-its-water/

Obviously, the "pulling themselves up by their bootstraps" methodology to solve poverty is optimistic.

branman42

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #81 on: March 06, 2016, 07:31:16 PM »
Quote

Rent on a 2BR apartment starts at $2400 a month.

Let's say 2 people make minimum wage and manage to get 50 hours a week between two jobs a piece (a pipe dream, really).  That's still not much money.

When you make a comment like: "even at minimum wage they would make enough to not live in a health-hazard place that makes their kids sick" you are greatly simplifying the issue and applying your own personal experience filter.
If rent starts! at $2,400 that is 100% a reason to move at minimum wage no matter the circumstances, unless moving up is the goal, i.e. aspiring actor (and even that is slightly unreasonable).    I live in a fairly nice 2 BR apartment with a large living space in walking distance of a grocery store, banks, several restaurants, a walmart (25 minute walk for walmart), and a good state college. It only costs $500 per month. The drop in rent of $1,900 means a federal minimum wage worker would need to work 60 less hours per week no including taxes. It would be even more if taxes are figured in, or the fact that Ohio's minimum wage is 8.10. $2,400 per month is ridiculous for minimum wage.

mm1970

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #82 on: March 07, 2016, 11:23:21 AM »
Even if they put it all on a credit card, they would literally break even on the moving costs within months.

These folks most likely don't have a checking account, let alone a credit card.  Most likely they would have to take out a payday loan to finance the job hunting trip.  Should they risk that cycle of debt for a potential move?
Yes, you know it's hard to explain sometimes.  I've seen several families make "moves" for new jobs, careers, what have you.

It's about 50/50 - great idea vs. complete disaster. 

mm1970

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #83 on: March 07, 2016, 11:25:02 AM »
Quote
One comment about the comic - if both of Paula's parents are working two jobs, and working enough hours that she rarely see them, even at minimum wage they would make enough to not live in a health-hazard place that makes their kids sick. The story would change completely if her parents were Mustachian. She would have grown up in reasonable comfort, learned a lot of self reliance skills, and gone on to a comfortable adulthood.

Not necessarily.  This will GREATLY depend on where you live. HCOL?  Not so much.

Well, if you're going to work at Walmart, why live in a HCOL? And in any case, I bet there are tons of Mustachians in every HCOL in America who spend less than minimum wage and live comfortably.
Where did you grow up?  Where does your family live? 

Do you have the ability to move?  Do you even have a car, money to change locations, ability to put first/last months rent in a new location?
Do you have childcare?  If you move, are you giving up free childcare (sibling, parents?)  Does it make sense to move?

Rent on a 2BR apartment starts at $2400 a month.

Let's say 2 people make minimum wage and manage to get 50 hours a week between two jobs a piece (a pipe dream, really).  That's still not much money.

When you make a comment like: "even at minimum wage they would make enough to not live in a health-hazard place that makes their kids sick" you are greatly simplifying the issue and applying your own personal experience filter.

By the way that $2400 a month apartment in my town would be a sh*thole in a bad neighborhood, likely poorly maintained (leaky roof, mold, etc.)

Then again, a fair number of minimum wage workers and families in my town are homeless, including kids who attend my son's school.

Even if the place is $2400, there are apparently a bunch of other people living with them, so they wouldn't be paying that full amount unless they're also suckers on top of making bad financial decisions. I know people are bad at saving, but do you really think that a family with two adults working four jobs could not reasonably save up enough to pay for ONE MOVE over 18-20 years? Even if they put it all on a credit card, they would literally break even on the moving costs within months.
How can you be so sure that the move won't be a complete disaster?  I can't imagine that it's terribly easy for two parents to both get new jobs in a new location with no family and have it all work out.

I wouldn't mind seeing statistics on that, in fact.  In my own personal circle, it seems to be 50/50 (worked out great vs. complete disaster).

mm1970

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #84 on: March 07, 2016, 11:29:12 AM »
Quote
One comment about the comic - if both of Paula's parents are working two jobs, and working enough hours that she rarely see them, even at minimum wage they would make enough to not live in a health-hazard place that makes their kids sick. The story would change completely if her parents were Mustachian. She would have grown up in reasonable comfort, learned a lot of self reliance skills, and gone on to a comfortable adulthood.

Not necessarily.  This will GREATLY depend on where you live. HCOL?  Not so much.

Well, if you're going to work at Walmart, why live in a HCOL? And in any case, I bet there are tons of Mustachians in every HCOL in America who spend less than minimum wage and live comfortably.
Where did you grow up?  Where does your family live? 

Do you have the ability to move?  Do you even have a car, money to change locations, ability to put first/last months rent in a new location?
Do you have childcare?  If you move, are you giving up free childcare (sibling, parents?)  Does it make sense to move?

Rent on a 2BR apartment starts at $2400 a month.

Let's say 2 people make minimum wage and manage to get 50 hours a week between two jobs a piece (a pipe dream, really).  That's still not much money.

When you make a comment like: "even at minimum wage they would make enough to not live in a health-hazard place that makes their kids sick" you are greatly simplifying the issue and applying your own personal experience filter.

By the way that $2400 a month apartment in my town would be a sh*thole in a bad neighborhood, likely poorly maintained (leaky roof, mold, etc.)

Then again, a fair number of minimum wage workers and families in my town are homeless, including kids who attend my son's school.

Even if the place is $2400, there are apparently a bunch of other people living with them, so they wouldn't be paying that full amount unless they're also suckers on top of making bad financial decisions. I know people are bad at saving, but do you really think that a family with two adults working four jobs could not reasonably save up enough to pay for ONE MOVE over 18-20 years? Even if they put it all on a credit card, they would literally break even on the moving costs within months.

I know a number of families in my town who are "married" to this place. They'll struggle financially but they won't leave this place b/c everyone they have ever known lives here.
Same here.  There is a 7 year waiting list for subsidized housing.  It's very hard to find places to live that are affordable.  Many of the families have 1 or 2 jobs per adult - but one or no cars.  So, moving 35-40 miles in either direction causes an additional problem.  Sure, it's cheaper to live. However, with the odd jobs and odd hours, you would need 1 or 2 cars, plus the cost of gas, plus the child care that comes along with that commute.  At least professionals can carpool.

Not that there aren't jobs in the other towns, but there aren't as many and they don't pay as well.  Even in my educated circle, it's not uncommon to find one family member "sent ahead" for 6 months to 3 years, before the rest of the family joins them.  Otherwise, huge risk.

TheGrimSqueaker

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #85 on: March 07, 2016, 02:04:13 PM »
Quote
One comment about the comic - if both of Paula's parents are working two jobs, and working enough hours that she rarely see them, even at minimum wage they would make enough to not live in a health-hazard place that makes their kids sick. The story would change completely if her parents were Mustachian. She would have grown up in reasonable comfort, learned a lot of self reliance skills, and gone on to a comfortable adulthood.

Not necessarily.  This will GREATLY depend on where you live. HCOL?  Not so much.

Well, if you're going to work at Walmart, why live in a HCOL? And in any case, I bet there are tons of Mustachians in every HCOL in America who spend less than minimum wage and live comfortably.
Where did you grow up?  Where does your family live? 

Do you have the ability to move?  Do you even have a car, money to change locations, ability to put first/last months rent in a new location?
Do you have childcare?  If you move, are you giving up free childcare (sibling, parents?)  Does it make sense to move?

Rent on a 2BR apartment starts at $2400 a month.

Let's say 2 people make minimum wage and manage to get 50 hours a week between two jobs a piece (a pipe dream, really).  That's still not much money.

When you make a comment like: "even at minimum wage they would make enough to not live in a health-hazard place that makes their kids sick" you are greatly simplifying the issue and applying your own personal experience filter.

By the way that $2400 a month apartment in my town would be a sh*thole in a bad neighborhood, likely poorly maintained (leaky roof, mold, etc.)

Then again, a fair number of minimum wage workers and families in my town are homeless, including kids who attend my son's school.

Even if the place is $2400, there are apparently a bunch of other people living with them, so they wouldn't be paying that full amount unless they're also suckers on top of making bad financial decisions. I know people are bad at saving, but do you really think that a family with two adults working four jobs could not reasonably save up enough to pay for ONE MOVE over 18-20 years? Even if they put it all on a credit card, they would literally break even on the moving costs within months.

I know a number of families in my town who are "married" to this place. They'll struggle financially but they won't leave this place b/c everyone they have ever known lives here.
Same here.  There is a 7 year waiting list for subsidized housing.  It's very hard to find places to live that are affordable.  Many of the families have 1 or 2 jobs per adult - but one or no cars.  So, moving 35-40 miles in either direction causes an additional problem.  Sure, it's cheaper to live. However, with the odd jobs and odd hours, you would need 1 or 2 cars, plus the cost of gas, plus the child care that comes along with that commute.  At least professionals can carpool.

Not that there aren't jobs in the other towns, but there aren't as many and they don't pay as well.  Even in my educated circle, it's not uncommon to find one family member "sent ahead" for 6 months to 3 years, before the rest of the family joins them.  Otherwise, huge risk.

If the family contains elderly people, children, or individuals with disabilities who rely on government benefits of any kind, such as Medicaid, it's not always easy or even necessarily possible to transfer that person's benefits to the new state. Anyone who gets into a situation where the supply of benefits or places is limited (such as a heavily subsidized nursing home, rehab facility, inpatient mental health facility, or subsidized apartment) generally needs to hold onto it. They can't afford to move, because they go to the end of the line in their new location and have to wait their turn. This can take years. Until such time as they are able to secure benefits for themselves, they are 100% dependent on the working or able-bodied members of the family. This means that any able-bodied working adults or teenagers get pulled away from what they're doing to take care of smaller children, disabled adults, elders, and other kinds of in-home caregiving instead of earning a living or continuing their own education.

It's the same in an economy as it is on a battlefield: killing an opponent takes one person out, but just wounding that person takes two to three people out of the action. The person who's hit is out, obviously, but it also takes one to two other people to care for him or her. When a member of a family is sick, injured, a child, very old, or otherwise in need of care, the resources to provide care for that person have to come from somewhere. They do not fall from the sky.

The battlefield analogy breaks down a bit because families (generally) aren't shooting at each other. What deals out the hits is life itself.

Sooner or later, everyone gets old, has a baby, gets sick, or picks up an injury and needs care of some kind. If you don't want that person to rot from neglect, you can either hire someone else to do the work (perhaps by checking into some kind of care facility if it's appropriate, or by putting a child in day care), or you can do the work yourself. Most families can get by if only about a third of the family members have special needs such that they require care and can't get through the day independently. But, frankly, poor families tend to have way more people with special needs like that. They're far more likely to contain adults who suffer from a physical injury, an illness exacerbated by poor nutrition or an inability to pay for preventive care, an old war wound, an untreated or untreatable mental illness, long-term incarceration, a personality disorder, an addiction, or complications related to poor education (such as functional illiteracy).

Every person who's hit requires one to two more to take care of him or her. Pretty soon there's no money left to pay for help. Then, the labor must come from the family. Eventually there are no able-bodied, trained adults left to hold down a job or earn income, or to take care of the actual children because everyone is too busy focusing on the emergency created by whoever has special needs that require attention. The kids end up fending for themselves and sometimes making bad decisions that impair their own ability to become self-supporting. Government programs can slow this process down a bit by providing some help for the elderly, sick, and disabled, but no family in their right collective mind is going to move away from such a program into a region where 100% of the burden is thrown back onto the wage earners. There just aren't enough wage earners.

MgoSam

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Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #86 on: March 09, 2016, 09:18:59 PM »
For someone mentioning moving to a LCOL, it isn't really that easy to do for many people.

A. Finding a place to rent, and moving expenses
B.Transplanting parents from the home and neighborhood they know
C. Losing your friends
D. It's likely that Paula went to a community college local university, many may not have big network and it may not be prestigious enough to draw weight in an area that she might move to.

People like Paula are ones that I would love to hire if I find them. They are loyal to their parents, came up the hard way, and are dedicated.

On a personal note, I wouldn't be nearly as educated without the direct effort of my parents. My dad taught me algebra when I was 7. My mom made it to every parent teacher meeting and kept asking teachers for their advice on how to encourage me. I was sent to various seminars and activities. If I got a bad grade (anything lower than a A-), they would encourage me to work harder and would offer to get me a tutor if I needed one. I can't imagine Paula's parents being as able to help her. This isn't because they don't care (they do), but they may not know any better.They came from little and might not know about tutoring (or unable to afford it), they probably can't invest as much time in Paula's education as my mom was able to do. This is one of the many factors that can contribute to "success" between people from different backgrounds.

afuera

  • Pencil Stache
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  • Posts: 565
  • Age: 32
  • Location: Charm City
Re: Millenials success due to rich parents
« Reply #87 on: March 24, 2016, 01:10:54 PM »
I had to email that article to my parents. They are both average wage earners with slightly above average savings and about to pay off their mortgage on the house I grew up in.
Subject:  Great news y'all.  Turns out your rich!

 

Wow, a phone plan for fifteen bucks!