Millenials don't donate? WRONG, CAN'T AFFORD TO DONATE.

[Grandan]

My first house was in Victoria and cost $21,000. I was earning $600 per month.

Grandan, You had it SOOOOOO EASY. Your wage was $7200/Yr. and your house was $21000, That is 1:3 Ratio. Holy smokes.. You have NO IDEA, so please don't talk like you know how it feels for those kids.

These kids' wage is often $25000/Yr, and they have to find a home for $400,000-$500,000... Even for a CONDO. Try finding a livable single family home. It's like $500,000- $750,000 and try find that in Victoria now. Easily over 1Million I bet.
That is like 1:16 to 1:30! even more for Victoria...

NOWHERE NEAR WHAT YOU PAID. You really have no idea.　Instead of talking like kids are not trying. Maybe give them some of your money to them really. You had it so easy and still bashing those kids for not trying hard enough. That is beyond me.

I find it quite hard for those kids. really.

The house I bought was a sub-starter home. It was a dive, it had no proper foundation, I could not get a bank loan on it.
The hot water was heated by an oil range in the kitchen. As it was, I was over my head and fortunately my wife was willing to work with me to make it a home.
Don't tell me it was easy, it was a sacrifice because we put aside all other comforts such as a car, television, meals out, movies and the like.
My wife worked part time outside the home riding her bike to work as did I ride my bike to work.
No car payment, no smart phone, no Vegas, Hawaii or even camping trips, our entertainment was to take walks with the baby buggy, two kids in tow. We beachcombed for the log to put up a clothesline pole for the clothes that we hung out on the clotheline from the wringer washer.
We salvaged lumber from houses being torn down to build the fence to enclose the garden that I hand dug.
You think it was easy do you? You think I have no idea?
It takes two people working hard to buy a house, do you think some kid earning $2000 per month should be able to buy a house? You are in La La land. And you are looking at $400,000? Something is out of whack.
https://classifieds.castanet.net/detail ... c/3176564/
https://classifieds.castanet.net/detail ... t/3274465/
But I guess your example wants to start at the top or did they think that prices were going down as they got older and houses would get cheaper?

[Queen K]

I'm not sure what you mean by "start at the top" because even downtown shack untouched by real reno's, wiring, insulation, new walls, etc. are still $500K, I could see your point if they were $300K.

And kudos to you and your work ethic to make it. I too did things like that, even digging out two huge stumps by HAND before I got someone to pull them out of the ground with a truck and chain. But in no way could I tell young people today that they had it as tough as I did because I paid under $150K for my 1938 fixer upper.

[Ka-El]

You can buy cheaper elsewhere. Not everyone can afford to live here.

Housing cost index has risen sharply across the country. It's not unique to just Kelowna.

I think you are both right. Housing costs have certainly increased across the country, but there are indeed locations across this province that provide better opportunities to get into the market and build lives. There really is life in communities outside of the Okanagan and all across BC. However, at the same time the ever growing income gap continues to expand while most people’s wages remain stagnant. While most people’s income continues to fall behind increased costs in living, a select few are becoming obscenely wealthy at great cost to everyone else. Our current capitalist system depends on having both winners and losers, and as we can see from global events the game is getting close to its end.

"Does that place come with a bunker?"

[HorganIsMyHero]

Our current capitalist system depends on having both winners and losers

Nope, I've been told by no fewer than 15 old people in the last week that all one has to do to have money to buy a house, own a vehicle, and donate to charities is pull up one's socks and work hard. Everyone can be a winner, just work hard.

[LANDM]

Our current capitalist system depends on having both winners and losers

Nope, I've been told by no fewer than 15 old people in the last week that all one has to do to have money to buy a house, own a vehicle, and donate to charities is pull up one's socks and work hard. Everyone can be a winner, just work hard.

Or, you can choose to deliver papers in Kelowna with a new engineering degree and complain about it.

It really is your choice, and considering your nom de voyage, I’m not surprised at your choice.

And I see young people making the other choice all the time. Everywhere. With new engineering degrees and without.

[HorganIsMyHero]

Or, you can choose to deliver papers in Kelowna with a new engineering degree and complain about it.

I didn't actually complain about anything. I pointed out why I, as a millennial, don't have money to donate to charities as per the topic.

I just think it's dumb how all these topics about younger people turn out stupid stories about how baby boomers worked soooo much harder than any other generation. There are people here talking about pulling out stumps with their bare hands and rummaging around for sticks to use as clotheslines.

I apologize that I don't have to fight bears for scraps of fish, forage in a forest for berries and sticks, and pull out stumps with my bare hands. I suppose that's why I have no money to give to charities.

[Ka-El]

I just think it's dumb how all these topics about younger people turn out stupid stories about how baby boomers worked soooo much harder than any other generation.

I agree. The world continues to change, and every generation must find its own way. As a baby boomer, I have to take some responsibility for being a part of a generation that allowed the status quo in politics to persist, and enabling a socioeconomic system doomed for failure to reach its course. Evolution, including social, political and cultural evolution is inevitable. We cannot stop change, and as much as this truth drives conservatives crazy and inspires them to pursue all sorts of desperate attacks, the world, including its politics and culture, will continue to change and evolve. As Charles Darwin observed, “It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change.”

At over 60 years of age I have witnessed a lot of change in my lifetime, and the one thing that stands out now is that pace of change has always been accelerating – just as it is now. I can remember shared telephone lines and black and white TVs. Now we have computers that fit in the palm of our hands, and social media platforms that are changing the way the world communicates. From black and white TVs to computers we can hold in our hand, the most dramatic change has occurred over the last 5 to 10 years, and we can only imagine what will change in the next 5 to 10 years.

We can only guess what our social systems might look like in another 10 to 20 years. The concern today is whether the foundation of that change is going to be based on diversity, tolerance and inclusion, or by intolerance, divisiveness, hate and exclusion as promoted by the so-called “populists”. The millennials might be disillusioned with the political system they’ve found here, but it is those same millennials we so desperately need to start participating in the political process so we can peacefully affect the direction of change before that choice is taken away from us.

[Grandan]

I'm not sure what you mean by "start at the top" because even downtown shack untouched by real reno's, wiring, insulation, new walls, etc. are still $500K, I could see your point if they were $300K.

And kudos to you and your work ethic to make it. I too did things like that, even digging out two huge stumps by HAND before I got someone to pull them out of the ground with a truck and chain. But in no way could I tell young people today that they had it as tough as I did because I paid under $150K for my 1938 fixer upper.

I'd say anything beyond your ability to finance is starting at the top or anything brand new.
Attempting to compete with retirees who come from Vancouver has indeed driven up the price of land but there are many alternatives such as condos, town homes and manufactured homes.
Whatever happened to pooling your resources with another couple to share the unit until you can work your way up.
Many have missed the boat by not buying when prices were reasonable somehow believing that prices would crash one day.

In my case market forces produced high interest rates that soared from 13% to 20.5%. It was ruinous for many because at the same time house prices dropped below what I had paid by 40% effectively wiping out my equity in the property but I persisted. This was my 3rd house, I was not a newby.

I heard a story of land that went unsold in Kelowna because no one could afford to the taxes. In fact they could not give it away because of taxes. Things used to be a lot more grim than we want to admit.

Today you could furnish your house complete with appliances from all the free items that are available. It was not always so.

If millennials can't afford to donate money, what is stopping them from donating their time? Rather than donating money we did not have, my wife and I donated our time in community service. I think the time was well spent and did more good than an equivalent amount of money would have done.

[Queen K]

I'd say anything beyond your ability to finance is starting at the top or anything brand new.
Attempting to compete with retirees who come from Vancouver has indeed driven up the price of land but there are many alternatives such as condos, town homes and manufactured homes.
Whatever happened to pooling your resources with another couple to share the unit until you can work your way up.
Many have missed the boat by not buying when prices were reasonable somehow believing that prices would crash one day.

In my case market forces produced high interest rates that soared from 13% to 20.5%. It was ruinous for many because at the same time house prices dropped below what I had paid by 40% effectively wiping out my equity in the property but I persisted. This was my 3rd house, I was not a newby.

I heard a story of land that went unsold in Kelowna because no one could afford to the taxes. In fact they could not give it away because of taxes. Things used to be a lot more grim than we want to admit.

Today you could furnish your house complete with appliances from all the free items that are available. It was not always so.

If millennials can't afford to donate money, what is stopping them from donating their time? Rather than donating money we did not have, my wife and I donated our time in community service. I think the time was well spent and did more good than an equivalent amount of money would have done.

We're talking about Millenials, when prices were reasonable in 2003 and down from there, many of them were in their teen-age years. Yes, they missed the freightliner. By the time 2005 rolled around I wouldn't have been able to afford moving out of my townhouse. Which in 2017 I'm in the boat right now, unless I sell this place and re-mortgage a better property. Can millenials even think of that if their rent is maxed out?

I don't feel sorry for Boomers who missed the boat, back in the 90's condos in Rutland were $74,000, now? $250K and up. Nevermind what's happened in the downtown area. OH, and with the Boomers so selfishly banning people from renting in nicer buildings, aka 55Plus only, or even 50Plus only, the rental and ownership squeeze is worse.

As for the donating of time, many young woman where I work have to put in for casual availability for extra hours and work in facilities suitable to their training (David Lloyd Jones, etc.) Time? It's eaten up by juggling children, two or three jobs and trying to find deals for stuff they need.

[HorganIsMyHero]

If millennials can't afford to donate money, what is stopping them from donating their time? Rather than donating money we did not have, my wife and I donated our time in community service. I think the time was well spent and did more good than an equivalent amount of money would have done.

Good point. One doesn't even have to physically show up to a location in order to donate time. Lots of places need help with websites, writing newsletters, and many other things.

[dirtybiker]

Here is a nice starter home, I would class as affordable.

https://classifieds.castanet.net/detail ... t/3294274/

I know many that have gone this route to free up funds to
realize other dreams, and not have to kill themselves through
work fatigue.

Just think of all the spare cash one could throw away....er...
I mean, donate ...ya know, to those that don't wanna work....

I know....cynical....

[Queen K]

I should buy it. I hate having all this counter space AND room to turn around in the bathroom.
If I rent this place out, the rent would pay for my pad rent and all the gas money going back and forth to work.
I'd even have enough left over for a CO2 alarm for the camper AND buying meals out all the time to avoid the hassle of having to store food where there is no storage.

Millenials, move over.

[Because_They_Lie]

I gradded from UBC in Vancouver around 11 months ago as an engineer so I suppose I qualify as a millennial. I literally can't afford to donate a nickel to any organization as the only job I've been able to find is delivering newspapers. I'm not sure where you people are seeing these rich millenials driving expensive cars and throwing money away but I certainly know no younger people like this. Most are struggling just to find bare-bones jobs and definitely aren't throwing their nickels away at charities.

I think you speak the truth of it, the reality for most is as you describe - the media is full of it!
It is all social engineering - the millennials are no different than any one of us. The powers that be socially engineer society, its not the younger generations being lazy or spoiled, it IS the SYSTEM!

[dirtybiker]

Everyone from the working class has had it hard, or finds
their prospects hard.
It has always been that way.

My Parents lived in a Homemade 14 ft trailer towed behind a jalopy
following the Railroad to which my Father was employed.

They got their first rental house after child #3

Bought their first (and only) house in 1969 for $6700.00...
It still had an outstanding mortgage when Pap passed away in the late 1990's

Every Generation has it hard.

Yet I never thought of us as poor, we just had to work...hard..

[GrooveTunes]

Looking forward to reading this book.

https://www.jessicabruder.com/nomadlandbook/