Yes, looking at my family, I see good lessons in the past.
I totally agree that people a generation or two ago had better sense when it comes to housing: Out on the country farms where I'm from, it was very typical in my grandparents' generation for a young couple to build a small house for themselves and live in it their whole lives. My grandmother says it was typical for people to build tall one-bedroom houses with space for attic bedrooms, bedrooms which could be added when the children arrived. And when the girls grew old enough "to court", they'd add on a living room -- always at the front of the house, which was considered proper. Then if one of the children stayed on the farm once the parents had grown elderly, they'd take over "the house" and the now-elderly couple'd take the "courting room" as their bedroom.
My husband's people were city folks on the other end of the state, but they also stayed in small houses. His grandparents raised three kids in a 2-bedroom house probably around 1000 sf. The kids shared the second bedroom 'til they were teens, then the boys kept the bedroom and one girl slept on the sofa. His grandmother lived in this house as long as she was able to take care of herself.
But today, even starter houses are expected to be "more" than our grandparents had.
I'd add to the thoughts on housing:
- Our grandparents didn't expect to start out out in a comfortable middle-class life. My grandparents chose Christmas Eve as their wedding day because it was the only day my grandfather wasn't working. They started their married life renting two rooms upstairs in an old woman's house. They cooked on a hot plate. My grandmother owned that hot plate 'til the day she died. A phone and a TV were things to which they aspired.
- Our grandparents didn't accept debt as a way of life. My grandparents both went to college. One started at community college, then earned a full scholarship to a prestigious university for his last two years. The other paid for a part of her tuition in turnips and other vegetables (her father delivered them straight to the college cafeteria); her father also sold hogs for her tuition. She used to say that when she was young, you saved for anything you had. My grandmother told me that when she and my grandfather built their house (1.5 years into their marriage), their house payment was $27/month, and sometimes it was hard to make that payment!
- Someone else mentioned the importance of family and friends, but don't leave out church. Our grandparents had their priorities in the right place in that respect too. In today's entertainment-driven world, we pay lip service to the importance of family, friends, and God; but the way we spend our time shows that they're not our real priorities.