This meme caught my attention -- I wanted to discuss it and take it apart.


For starters, you have housing costs which are insane. No, you can't just go "1960s" when it comes to a house. There is such a thing as the real estate market, the going rate for the average house, AND the fact they build homes to a certain size today.

My first "starter" home was in an old part of a small Texas town. No subdivision, no name. The homes were all built in the 1970s, and were about 1200 square feet. I talked to one neighbor -- she said someone raised a family of 5 in one of those homes. Ok, that's 1960's style for housing. That home cost me $80K in 2004. Could you get such a home for that price today? Maybe, I don't know. But I know this: such homes are NOT made anymore. The average home is 2,000 square feet, usually in a subdivision. Probably with HOA fees as well.

Maybe in some rural areas you could get land, and put down a manufactured home. They don't last as long as a regular, permanent house, so there's that.

(I know "trailer parks" exist -- but I think that's cheating. That's apples and oranges. The 60's family in the meme wasn't living in a "trailer park", so let's be real.)

Next point --

That 1960's family probably went on one vacation a year. The man of the house had a stable, well-paying job, and wasn't being laid off every few years.

I don't think the only reason "life is so expensive in 2025" is because we insist on Internet, smartphones, and computers. Those things are actually quite cheap for the most part. Think of all the things you DON'T have to buy, once you shell out for that $400 computer: typewriter, record player, security system, accounting/tax services, etc. Same for the $200 Android phone you buy once every couple years -- you don't have to buy a walkman, batteries, camera, maps, handheld games, other games, newspapers, magazines, pedometer, altimeter, weather radio, musical instrument tuner, dictionary, books, etc.

And BTW, a 32" flat screen TV probably costs WAY LESS than that huge black & white TV, if you adjust for inflation. As a percentage of your hourly salary, I mean.
A 32" flat screen TV costs $79 today.  That's about 5 1/2 hours of minimum wage ($15/hour) work.

Even if we fast-forwarded to the mid or late 80's, there is one reason you WOULD NOT want to go back: the tech. Tech was SO expensive. Not only did computers suck, but they were ridiculously expensive for what they did. Every kind of tech was expensive: TVs, receivers, amplifiers, ham radios, computers, video game systems, you name it. Everything else was better in the 80's -- but not the tech. If you love tech, you would DIE being sent back to the 80's.

I saw a meme that said it's easy to support a family on one income, if you aim for a 1960's lifestyle and standard of living. Can you calculate how much the following expenses would be, assuming a cost of living in a small town in Texas? A trailer home on 1 acre of land (not crammed together in a "trailer park" because that's not how residential living was in the 60's, especially in the photo) A single car, in decent condition, enough to fit the whole family Food (Groceries; mostly home-cooked meals) Dining out once a week (to mirror the 60's family, not because it's required for young Catholic families today) Yearly vacation (to mirror the 60's family) Life insurance (to mirror the 60's family) Home insurance (to mirror the 60's family) Electricity Phone Water Gas Gasoline for car Car insurance etc.

Yeah, that meme hits a nerve because there’s some truth baked into it—but only if you’re very honest about what a 1960s standard of living actually was, not the nostalgic highlight reel we carry in our heads.
I’ll walk through this like a real household budget, small-town Texas, single income, modest expectations. I’ll flag where modern reality sneaks in and ruins the fantasy.

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Baseline assumptions (important)

• Small town Texas, not Austin/Dallas suburbs
• One working adult, one stay-at-home parent
• 2–3 kids
• No student loans
• No daycare
• No subscriptions, no streaming, no gym
• Older but functional stuff, paid for or financed cheaply
• Modest comfort, not deprivation

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Housing
Trailer home on 1 acre

• Used single-wide or small double-wide, decent condition
• Land purchased, not rented

Mortgage + land payment:

• Trailer: ~$70,000
• Acre of land: ~$30,000
• 20% down, 6.5% interest

👉 ~$700–900/month
Home insurance:
👉 $75–125/month
Property taxes:
Texas hurts here, even in small towns
👉 $200–300/month
Total housing:
💵 $1,000–1,300/month
(This is already higher than the 1960s reality because property tax and insurance are much heavier today.)

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Utilities
Electricity
Trailer, modest AC use, Texas summers:
👉 $120–180/month
Water
Well or municipal small-town rates:
👉 $40–70/month
Gas (propane or natural)
Cooking + heat:
👉 $40–80/month
Phone
One basic plan, no premium nonsense:
👉 $40–60/month
Total utilities:
💡 $250–390/month

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Transportation
One family car

• Used minivan or large sedan
• Paid off or cheap loan

Car payment:
👉 $250–350/month
Car insurance:
👉 $90–130/month
Gasoline:

• Short commutes, local driving
   👉 $120–180/month

Maintenance fund:
👉 $75–100/month
Total transportation:
🚗 $535–760/month

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Food
Groceries (mostly home-cooked)
No organic everything, no delivery apps:
👉 $650–850/month
Dining out once a week
Family diner, pizza, Mexican:
👉 $200–250/month
Total food:
🍲 $850–1,100/month
(This is one of the biggest inflation shocks vs the 1960s.)

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Insurance & “Adulting”
Life insurance
Term life, single breadwinner:
👉 $25–40/month
Health insurance
This is where the meme quietly dies.
Employer plan, family coverage:
👉 $500–900/month
(out-of-pocket not included)
Total insurance:
🛡️ $525–940/month
(1960s families barely paid for health insurance; today it’s a pillar expense.)

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Yearly vacation
1960s-style:

• Road trip
• Motel
• Packed lunches
• Visiting family or national parks

👉 $2,000–3,000/year
👉 $170–250/month

---

Miscellaneous (clothes, toiletries, school stuff)
No brand chasing, hand-me-downs:
👉 $150–250/month

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Monthly Total (Realistic Range)

[th]Category[/th] [th]Monthly Cost[/th]
Housing	$1,000–1,300
Utilities	$250–390
Transportation	$535–760
Food	$850–1,100
Insurance	$525–940
Vacation	$170–250
Misc	$150–250

Grand Total
💰 $3,500 – $4,900 per month

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Required income (single earner)
To actually live this without panic:

• Minimum survivable: ~$50,000/year
• Comfortable but tight: ~$60,000/year
• Breathing room: ~$70,000/year

That’s before retirement savings, emergencies, or major repairs.

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So… was the meme lying?
Half-true, half fantasy.
What makes it possible:

• One car
• Small house
• No childcare
• No consumer lifestyle
• No constant upgrades

What breaks the 1960s comparison:

• Health insurance
• Property taxes
• Food prices
• Insurance in general
• Wage stagnation vs productivity

In the 1960s:

• Housing + food + healthcare were a much smaller % of income
• One income didn’t require financial gymnastics

Today:

• You can do it—but it’s deliberate, disciplined, and fragile

Our first home (purchased by my Boomer parents for $15,000) only had 2 bedrooms. With 3 children, 1 boy and 2 girls, our days were numbered in that home.
Sure enough, as I approached teen years, my parents decided to move so we could have separate bedrooms for the boys and girls.
We actually moved into a SMALLER home, albeit with 3 bedrooms and a finished basement.

I remember the panels in the basement -- we had that in our basements as well.

We also didn't experience air conditioning at home -- not even a window unit -- until 1994, when we moved into our 3rd (and "final") home.
Again, this was northern Illinois, which certainly needed A/C from time to time -- but many homes didn't have it.
There are times when Illinois is hotter than Texas *at a given moment*. Strange, but true.

Oh, almost forgot THE worst part of that 3 bedroom small house for 7 people ... it also just had ONE BATHROOM.  At one point we rigged up a toilet in the corner of the basement for emergency, and then we partially finished off that area as well, so at least you could close a door and have some privacy.  It was unfinished otherwise, as it was near the furnace and hot water heater ... but in a pinch, an emergency, it was a life-saver.  No shower or tub or anything like that, just a toilet closer to the wall on top of a concrete floor, and just finished outside of it by accident because we finished the other side of the 2x4s and that resulted in some privacy ... but you had to watch for spiders and such down there LOL.

When I and 2 of my brothers were in High School and all had to leave at the same time, we had assigned 10-minute shower windows in the morning, and we rotated who had to wake up the earliest.

Same for the $200 Android phone you buy once every couple years 

I must be doing it wrong. My phone is going on 10 years old... and it was a free upgrade.