Rose Cottage Ltd

I guess the rest of the question would be “Can You Take In One Lifetime?”

“Nostalgic?” How about nearly sickening???

For the moment let’s ignore the fact that Richard Nixon was Vice President and just look at the cost of these items in 1956. I picked this year because it is the year I was born, ergo, my lifetime. I think I’ve had enough already – and I (knock on wood) have a couple more decades of “change” to survive!

My mom gave one of these to each of her six children as Christmas gifts one year. I thought it was a nice idea until some of us started comparing prices. I’m the eldest and my brother, born in 1964, is the youngest. We’ll have a look at his birth year’s costs in a day or three.

My point is that from what I remember about costs when I got out of high school and started working in 1974, NOTHING could have prepared me for what things cost now – 40 years later.

In 1956, a new house could be purchased for under $12,000. The house my family purchased even in 1966 only cost $17,000 – and it was 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, about 1600 square feet, on a half acre of land. During the housing “crisis” when prices started to skyrocket, I did some research on that same house. The “valuation” – since it wasn’t for sale…$220,000. Same house, same street, 40 years later.

My mom and I have some interesting conversations about this since she will be 78 in June this year. In her lifetime prices are up enough to cause the big one but, prices changed less and slower in the 40 years leading up to say 1964 – than they have done in the 40 years since. I’m not sure how some people can afford what they are able to do these days. With vehicles costing 3 times the cost of a 1956 house, who knows what 2054 will bring??? I hope I’m not around to see the 1600 square foot, 3 bedroom, 2 bath house for a price of $2.9 million!

I need to go lie down with a cold cloth on my forehead – and pray I don’t live to be 98!!!