I was talking to my dad about housing the other day.

He told me that when he started working, his first full-time job paid around $3,000 a month.
Rent was roughly $700.
After housing, he still had enough left for food, transportation, utilities, and other expenses.
So I pulled up today’s numbers.
Average rent: $2,000+.
Entry-level pay: around $3,000–$3,500 a month before taxes.
Basic monthly expenses: easily another $1,500–$2,000.
He looked at the numbers for a while, then asked:
“How is anyone supposed to make that work?”
That’s the question.
For many people, the conversation isn’t about working harder.
It’s about why the math seems to get tougher with every generation.