Boomer parents

[Freesamples]

Anyone else got a boomer for a parent that a) has no idea how the world currently works and b) loves to put the boot in and c) is absolutely delusional about how much things cost.

me, I love to sniff out a bargain, crowning glory the summer hols I’ve booked for me, dh and dcs. 4 star+ AI, 2 adults 2 kids, package £2k and in summer holidays. Absolute belter. All to be met with a chorus of how expensive that is and how much we’re over paying and how they’d spend no more than £1k on holidays for us (in the mid early 00s). Plus, don’t want to go there, they hate brits, it’s too hot. (All places we went as kids btw)

it can’t be just me

These are the comments that breed resentment. Plenty of people are struggling to get on the housing ladder and would love to have a pot of savings to earn interest on 🙄. The boomer generation are statistically the wealthiest and benefitted from massive house price growth. All people want is a bit of sympathy about it being tough for todays younger people instead of crowing about (pretty meaningless) high interest rates and interest on savings.

You will have had comparatively higher expectations than your parents though. Times have moved on, it’s not considered acceptable nowadays to live in a house with no central heating. I hate to break it to you but even if someone was prepared to buy a house with no central heating there just aren’t really any available.

Dishwashers and decor are a luxury but you know that.

The boomer generation seem to be the only generation that begrudge the “modernising” of life e.g. sky tv, comparatively cheaper travel abroad, avocados etc. for the next generation, despite them having a significantly better deal then the generation before them I.e. no world wars, no rationing, better sanitation etc

The whole generation?

There are a lot of MNs that fall into the B generation OP, criticise them at your peril! 😆😆

People do have sympathy for today's youth, just like I can remember people having sympathy for me when I was starting out.
You can have sympathy while still being glad interest rates aren't being being kept artificially low so you at last get some return on your savings FGS.

Also, of course those born prior to 1965 are statistically the wealthiest. They've had the longest time to accrue assets.

I'm not 'a boomer' but I also remember interest rates being 15.2%

Which is not too different from today when you look at house prices.

Obviously not the whole generation, but plenty, as evidenced on this thread alone.

Also, of course those born prior to 1965 are statistically the wealthiest. They've had the longest time to accrue assets.

No the point is younger generations can’t accrue wealth in the same manner as things have changed.

My parents were born in the mid-50s and had grandchildren in the mid-90s. They could have a ten year old great-grandchild at this point and it wouldn't have been weird. The last of the boomers could have teenagers, but most boomers had their children younger than that.

Not sure that argument holds when they are also richer (in real terms) than the silent generation were? Unlikely future generations will reach that level of comparative wealth given the stabilisation of house prices and demise of gold plated pensions.

Tbf “I remember 15% interest rates” and “glad I’m getting a return on my savings now” are not exactly sympathetic comments 😂.

No they don’t turn down paid for driving lessons, cars, help to fund university, deposits for flats, deposits to purchase properties, help with childcare etc etc.

the word “snowflake” directed at millennials doesn’t apply to me (Gen X, we seem to get off fairly lightly in the generation bashing stakes) but I’m still offended by it.

Oh, hang on, maybe taking offence makes me a snowflake after all 🤔

And whenever people talk about higher interest rates in the past they alway forget MIRAS!

Yet that's what you said.

If people don't like having the minutiae of their expenditure remarked upon, then why divulge the details in the first place? I would no sooner tell my elderly parents how much a pram cost than fly out of the window, they would be aghast. Same with mortgage, car, holidays etc. If you don't want it commented on then don't pin it up on the noticeboard.

I really dislike these "age tags", they only act as a divide between people born in different times.
I was raised by a single parent Mother who worked full time, made our clothes, struggled to pay bills/buy food, no luxuries and certainly didn't go on any holidays. I think people who criticise don't understand why so called boomers shouldn't have their own opinions?
I have a great relationship with my children and we worked hard to give them the best childhood we could afford. I help them out as much as I can, with both my time and finances, bits, nothing major.
If you don't like their comments, don't add fuel by telling them the price of things.
Im sure you will happily accept any inheritance when it comes your way so try to be more accepting of them now and accept that they were born in a different time and get ready for when your children are critical of you.
A lot of "boomers" still work full time (including myself) and enjoying life, no guilt here.
Try to see things from your parents perspective and don't waste your time moaning on here - go and enjoy your bloody bargain holiday!

Wow! This horrible thread is putting me off Mumsnet and I've been here almost 18 years. Is this representative of how people think about their parents / grandparents? It's nasty!!

I am not a boomer, but I am so sympathetic towards the younger generation that I will be allowing my DC to stay in my home rent free for as long as they want. They get to spend their money on clothes and makeup, which I didn't get to do as I was paying rent in a grotty shared house. Nearly all my friends are offering the same for their DC in London. I think that's enough acknowledgement.

A lot of "boomers" still work full time (including myself) and enjoying life, no guilt here.

Not really, most of that generation are no longer working age. I have a colleague who was born in '61 she is the oldest and most out of touch person in my team.Not many boomers are still working really.

@YaWeeFurryBastard it was still 60% of our total income.

this is why houses cost more now

1. When banks would only lend 3.5 x one income that was what people could afford to pay for a house so that was how much they cost.

1. When some families decided to have 2 incomes and wanted to have more expensive houses based on a multiple of 2 incomes and banks gleefully enabled this so they could lend more then houses began to cost 3.5 x 2 incomes.

1. When interest rates hit rock bottom repayments became much more affordable so banks lent a larger multiple of 2 incomes .

1. When the bank of mum and dad came along with large contributions the amount needed to buy became a large multiple of 2 salaries plus a large cash boost.

you might not like it, but houses have always cost what some people can afford to pay for them. It's very simple. What don't you understand about it?

Link if anyone is interested
https://www.statista.com/statistics/1393584/employment-figures-uk-by-generation/#:~:text=Number%20of%20people%20employed%20in%20the%20UK%201992%2D2022%2C%20by%20generation&text=In%202022%2C%20among%20the%20working,and%204.3%20million%20Gen%20Z.

Love that mumsnet has now decided ‘boomer’ is offensive, that rather shows their general negative attitudes towards the generation.

OP your parents don’t sound very bright frankly and there are people who aren’t in every generation.

None of the stereotypes help - ‘less material possessions’ well you’d probably have your eyes opened talking to my father who is one of the older ones. He had a very comfortable childhood and says so himself. Yes they didn’t have smartphones but we don’t have things that weren’t invented either, that’s normal. They did have a car, fridge, telephone, washing machine etc. My
mothers upbringing was different, they had less (although she didn’t have a hard upbringing either).

Some boomers were able to buy houses cheaply - my parents first house a 3 bed semi was 8k in 1972. The thing is though it was incredibly hard to get mortgages then so most people still couldn’t buy one until mortgages became more widespread and the prices shot up. Both of my parents always acknowledged this and that when DH and I bought our first house they what we could afford with 2 graduate salaries was less. My mother always used to go on about how their generation wasted huge amounts of money on fags - about half of them smoked in the 70s. A far worse use of money than avocados.

Me I’m a late gen x and it is harder for young people now than when I was starting as an adult. Not that it was easy then as in we were pretty skint for a bit but that’s normal young adulting. Our house isn’t as expensive or ‘fancy’ now as either of our parents’.

Some young people are crap with money these days but some aren’t. Because everyone’s different. Some boomers annd gen x’s are shit with money too.

Plenty of people pay way more than 60% of one salary on their mortgage, that isn’t a unique position?

You’ve done plenty of “explaining” there (no need by the way, I work in the industry so I’m well aware of the sequence of events) but much of it is wrong. “Houses have always cost what some people can afford to pay”, er no, home ownership rates are going down and houses are being tied up in the hands of fewer and fewer people/investors. Of course it’s harder for people nowadays, are you living under a rock?

You simply would not be able to afford a house (and certainly not the same house) on 3.5x one salary today. That makes you very lucky, what don’t you understand about it?