Do you worry your children will not have the same lifestyle or job opportunities as you?

[mids2019]

I was reflecting that over the course of their childhood my children have had a reasonably affluent lifestyle, 4 nd detached house, 1 or 2 foreign holidays per year, (including Disney Florida), fair amount of after school activities etc. They have had this lifestyle partially because we are late(ish) parents therefore professionally advanced and rsecure fiancially. Over the years we have Chad frees higher educattion, parental assurance with house deposits, low interest rates etc.

I look at the costs of modern living for the young with expensive housing, high interest rates, paid for higher education and an increasingly cut throat graduate job market and I wonder if ever my children will experience the same as us? Will out children notice the contrast in lifestyle especially with housing and holidays when they join the workforce?

It's the contrast I worry aboit. I grew up relatively poor in a lot of respects so I getting a semi detached house felt a real leg up in life as well as visiting foreign capitals in my twenties. It just seemed I had somehow scanned a little in terms of lifestyle and it could be the reverse for my children

Does anyone feel the same?

I worry about my DC having to work until they are 70 or older because of pension age going up as LL the time, 68 is already planned. Now there is talk of bri going it in sooner. I worry about the size of my DD and sil's mortgage. It's fine whilst they both have good jobs but if a recession hits his job will go quickly. My mortgage is now thankfully repaid but I know I might need to help any of my DC if they lose their jobs to tide them over until they can get another job.

I’m 59….My kids are grown…..I raised 3 in a 4 bed home with holidays abroad every year…..we did this on 2 public sector wages ….neither particularly well paid..….neither of us had a degree at the time……but we had a decent standard of living …l.all 3 attended a variety of activities …..we took them to Australia several times to see family…at least 2 to 3 hols a year…..always one abroad….we did have to work overtime to pay for things on occasions…l.but no way could we have had this lifestyle in todays financial climate……my DD is now 30….she has 2DC ( oldest is 9)….she has chosen to stick with 2 children and live in a small (but cosy) home , and run an older car( they have only 1 car and share this) …so she can have a better lifestyle ….as in better holidays and activities for her DC ……..she takes them abroad every year sometimes twice….with a bigger mortgage and 2 expensive cars and more children….this would not be possible….however we live in the NW ….so cheaper house prices than in the South….my DDs mortgage is 650 but I appreciate this is not the case down south

Financially my six year old is already much better off than me. However they won’t benefit from having a big family to socialise with and be a part of, so I do worry about that

Yes. The combination of house prices/rents, uni fees, general cost of living increases and a less stable economy and job market (and if course climate change and AI) means dds life will in many respects be more worrying and less secure.

Trying to encourage her to go to uni and live outside of London (even though it's been her home all her life and for 30 years of my life) as it's just not viable without hefty inheritance.

We caught the tail end of the good times when it was possible for a young couple starting out to buy a place in a decent area without massive familial help. Think those days are gone sadly.

It is, you’re right.

It’s mainly the housing situation that’s screwed for them isn’t it?

I bought a flat in my early 20’s in London and I’m not a high earner.

My parents were middle earners but every few years they’d upgrade their house. No chance of that for us.
I remember when rent was cheap compared to mortgages and now it seems to be the other way round.

Not sure how my dc will ever be able to afford to move out.

All the things mentioned in this thread have a knock on effect.

People having less children/having them later will affect the country’s economy in a big way.

I grew up poor. We have become middle class, I have enough to pay everything and some treats. But I fear my dc will have a less affluent life for their children due to rising costs etc.

Still we loved, had sex for pleasure, created art, told stories and made music, decorated our homes, cultivated flowers, domesticated animals, embellished our clothing, laughed, did our hair. This idea that all our kids must be able to get a mortgage to buy their own dreary new build property and get a car on finance so they can get to their computer on time every day. Does anyone else just feel it’s a bit weird?

I think you've got some serious rose tinted spectacles on there about the past tbh.

I'm of the view there is enough money and resources in this world that the minimum bench mark can be a lot higher than it was, even what it is now. Views may change ob what that benchmark is, maybe with climate change travel won't be sustainable, but I think we still live in society where most of the wealth is hoarded and I don't think we should accept that.

I think you've got some serious rose tinted spectacles on there about the past tbh.

I think she’s got some grey tinted spectacles about the present (is that a thing? You know what I mean.) People are still having sex, laughing, creating art…seeing modern life as only dreary new builds and office work is reductive (and a little sneery).

I think guarding against getting stuck in cycles of pointless acquisitiveness is a good idea- doing a job you hate to pay for the car you hate but need to get you to the job you hate…but most people do manage to guard against this most of the time and to find beauty and meaning in life and connection with others, in spite of everything.

Yes, I do.

DD is 21 and in her final year at university. She was trying to work out the salary she would need to live a similar lifestyle to ours, and was shocked.

The big issue is housing. We are currently at peak earning but could not afford our home if we wanted to buy it now. Not even close.

Doesn’t it depend on the age of your dc? Someone on the thread with 18 yr olds is going to have quite a different view to someone with an 8 yr old as things will likely have been very different for the 2 sets of parents?

Yes, especially with inheritance tax likely to increase. We just want to pass things we have worked hard for on to them without getting screwed.

It's maybe having to spell out facts that they don't learn at school such as if you have a non managerial nursing position, or a non senior police officer then detached housing in better parts of a city maybe a challenge.

Well even with a 6 fig salary you won’t necessarily be able to afford that. And the most important thing is whether your parents can help, if they help & how much they help.

Education has suffered like many public services by the lack of investment & schools are being impacted by lower birth rates because of the current funding model. Private education will shrink (the increased costs, some parents preferring to save for deposits, uni, coming out of the TPS) so I think the good state schools will be even more competitive.

I also think a lot of people have housing wealth & assume that will go to their dc’s but the government are going to have to come after that in some form because of the ageing population & increased strain on NHS & social care.

People having less children/having them later will affect the country’s economy in a big way.

It already is

@Michiamo 'people having less children, having them later in life, will affect the country's economy in a big way.'

I left school in 1981. Maggie T was in power. We girls were all expected to have careers, our own money, freedom & independence not known by our mothers. The pill meant babies were off the agenda, certainly during our 20s.

Apart from one teenage accident, I don't think any of my class mates had a child in her 20s. That was what govt of the day wanted, high earning women, adding to GDP and bringing more skills to the workforce.

They can hardly blame us now. I've spent 35 years paying higher rate tax, having had one child in my 40s.

Maybe yours

not mine

@nutrosti I think my dc will still be impacted by the wider social shift, I expect more poverty, increased crime, more violence, higher taxes etc. How are you insulating your dc from that?

My DS already has a better quality of life that I ever did so no I'm not worried. I live in a council flat.