To think the standard of living for retired people had to change

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I'm a millennial. I will retire in my seventies. Many in my age group will be still paying their mortgage off well into their sixties. Many will never be able to buy. This is not a moan about that.

My mums generation were able to buy cheaper houses in the eighties. Some have also inherited well (houses which their parents owned and didn't have to sell to pay for care, which had risen in price to above a million). They had better pension plans. Some were able to go to university for free and their degrees actually meant something in the workplace: They often paid off their mortgages in their forties. I see a lot of my parents relatives have retired early and have very enviable lives.

Two uncles have retired in their early sixties. They are both in good help. They spend their days on many holidays, eating out multiple times per week, going to garden centres, renovating their beautiful houses, helping children financially and with childcare. They will have presumably worked out their finances and could afford to continue to live like this for the rest of their lives! Possibly thirty more years!

I think they are possibly going to be unique in their quality of life. We will never have that and I don't see my children's generation having things any earlier.

In essence the generation before me were mostly fortunate, unless personal situations changed their financial situation or they lost their homes during the nineties interest rises. Retirements and pensions were never designed to support people for three decades and that things had to change hence raising the retirement age and making people pay more towards their care.

They didn't exist. Well done. I assume now that they do exist, all these righteous older people choose not to partake in these awful frivolous things?

Can you explain the logic behind arguing that because something didn't exist when I was growing up that I shouldn't be taking advantage of it now if it makes my life easier and more comfortable?

We already do think about how to fund treatment in the uk. If a medicine costs too much, it doesn't get used. There seems to be an assumption on this thread that life expectancy will continue to increase but it isn't at the moment. Also, some treatments e.g. for dementia could hugely decrease costs for society in other areas.

I was asked to get my husbands permission when I went to buy a sofa on hire purchase in 1983. Only 40 years ago.

Interesting so many assume millennials will be working into their 70s, I think that unlikely given AI will take a lot of jobs.

This really worries me.

Some of us do, and some of us don't, @Oliotya and so I do understand the point you're making.

The point I was trying to make is that times were different. As a percentage of income, food, fuel and mortgage payments back in the 1970s were much higher than today. Even if these 'frivolous' things had been available, most of us would still not have been able to buy them. Yes, there were rich people in the 1970s of course, but most people were not, and some of us had close to nothing.

But I see your point, and perhaps 'frivolous' was the wrong word, sorry if I wasn't clear about this.

@coffeeaddict77 that's even worse then isn't it? If they can't get their pension till then but no jobs either. So what we just leave them to starve? Maybe we'll have to go back to the days of subsistence farming, except that won't work because that particular generation is unlikely to be able to afford a garden.

1975: The Sex Discrimination Act makes it illegal to discriminate against UK women in work, training and education. As a result, employers, landlords, banks and finance companies have to treat women as equal to men for the first time. This means that British women can now open bank accounts and apply for credit and loans in their own name, without their husband’s permission. In reality, many women still find it hard to get credit due to low earnings – they typically earn less than men and are more likely to take career breaks due to pregnancy and childcare.

I suggest a few people try and watch the Ken Loach (1960's) film of Cathy Come Home, as they seem to think we were all rocking around in cheerful wealth at that time.

That film showed the reality of poor housing, lack of Women's rights, working class poverty etc, and it started a change in society. I think Shelter was founded on the back of it, along with Women's Aid, and refuges set up by Erin Pizzy.

I never bought a house, I pay £800 a month for my LA home. I don't get top ups and that's fine. I manage ok, and have a nice life. I paid in to the state, and I paid into private pensions. I don't get free dentist, opticians etc and I pay taxes on my income.

I worked, my ex worked, and we didn't get any handouts or subsidies. If we had no food, then tough. We had to make do. Jumble sales for clothes.

But we got there, although divorced later.

Ive helped my kids buy their houses, and am currently helping my adult GCs through Uni.

Because I saved and only bought what I needed. And, because of the interest rate rise, I am finally getting a better return on my savings.

Most young parents have tough years - it's nothing new, and it will probably always be that way.

Then like most, you need to build up a private pension too.
With current projections I’ll have state pension plus £1200 a month - not massive amounts but with no mortgage by then it’ll be good enough for a reasonably enjoyable lifestyle

Some women never worked or very part time. Paid the married women’s stamp without realising what it was. A lot of women didn’t have a handle on financial matters.

Men filled in the family tax return

Paid the married women’s stamp without realising what it was. A lot of women didn’t have a handle on financial matters

My first job was in the then DHSS mid 70s (just before the married woman's stamp was phased out). Some women were still opting for it and we had to explain to them the impact on their state pension before they signed up. They then had to sign the application form to say they'd received this advice and understood it.

What I've noticed is how some younger people respond negatively or defensively to older people talking about their pasts. For many of us it is natural stage of our lives to want to talk about our histories; it helps us to make sense of it and to process any unresolved loss and grief. So it saddens me when some younger people react to this and shut us down by criticising or insulting us. I was young once and I remember older people talking just as I am now as a 50 year old and I recall it feeling strange that I had not much to say about my life, mainly because I hadn't lived very long. But here I am now, doing just as my elders once did, thinking back, reflecting and actually feeling pretty sad about the way my life went. This isn't to say I don't feel for the younger generation; of course I do. I am a mum, two of my children have disabilities and it pains me to see how they are being treated as disabled people. I worry for their future too; who is going to look after them when I'm gone? If I can leave this planet knowing my children are safe, that's all I wish for and I daresay most parents wish the same for their children too.

The main issue is the boomers of the 1950s are now entering retirement which coupled with medical improvements are also living longer which is great. This brings problems though, if the retired population is higher (which it will be) than the working population there is not enough revenue being generated to support them and this at a time when people are living a lot longer so need supporting longer. The main solution to this is that ugly word "immigration" but people don't seem to want that. How does society support an aging population?

But many retailers still asked for a male guarantor. I applied for my first credit card and bought the sofa with that. From a different shop!
It was also perfectly legal for pubs to refuse to serve a woman until 1982. Woman of my generation fought so hard for the rights which are sadly taken for granted by many.

The majority of that generation left school at 14 and 15 and had worked for over 50 years by the time they retired.

Is there statistics for this, the majority of women born then worked 50 years?

My disabled husband is 64, he’ll be working until he is 68 at least, when our mortgage will be paid off.

just love a stereotype. Not.

sorry more than 50 years?

How does society support an aging population?

the stock answer seems to be robots!

Asking for a male guarantor was illegal though.

I agree with you about our fight for the rights which are now taken for granted by younger women. Life was so much more restrictive for women 50 years ago, even getting contraception if you weren’t married was an ordeal.

I left school at 16, having worked part time from 14, and got my pension when I was 66.

Flowers4me · Today 09:05

What I've noticed is how some younger people respond negatively or defensively to older people talking about their pasts. For many of us it is natural stage of our lives to want to talk about our histories; it helps us to make sense of it and to process any unresolved loss and grief. So it saddens me when some younger people react to this and shut us down by criticising or insulting us

Do you mean in the contact of this thread or generally? If you mean here then I think it's fair because the thread is about how retired people can't expect things to continue exactly as they are. It's just not possible. There isn't enough workers (and therefore money) to support it. And it really isn't fair that workers are expected to pay more and more to support today's retired when it isn't what they will be able to enjoy themselves. But about 90% of the responses from older people are about how tough they had it when they were young (which I'm sure is true) and how they therefore deserve it now. It's tone deaf. Young people today also have it tough - I would say tougher to be honest, sure most of them have phones and go abroad once a year but they have no hope of a home of their own, or a future like they see older people now enjoying, so why should t they have a few nice things?
What I see is older people shutting down the younger generation with insults about how they're lazy and have everything given to them on a plate, even though that's blatantly not true.
If however you mean in the wider world them that's different and I'm sorry you feel like that.

Work it out for yourself. Most women left school at 16, the pension age is now 66/67.

Fucking hell, another age bashing post. Give it a rest! Whilst you’re resting perhaps have a look at how 1950s women have faced a lifetime of discrimination only to be told, they are now being robbed of thousands of pounds of their pension.

grottyb · Today 09:10

The majority of that generation left school at 14 and 15 and had worked for over 50 years by the time they retired.

Is there statistics for this, the majority of women born then worked 50 years?

Well quite. Just a few posts above yours is one from an older person saying how a lot of women didn't work or were very part time and it wasn't explained to them about "married women's stamp"