Millennials: the house you grew up in vs. your house now

[Anonymous]

I'm not a millennial -- on the younger side of Gen X -- but the house I grew up in was nicer and bigger than our house and in a similar but not quite as nice area. Same county we live in now. What was even nicer was the beach house we had where I spent my summers growing up. DH can say the same. We both had SAHM and workaholic dads. DH and I are both involved parents who certainly are not working to our potential but feel like we have a good work life balance. Some days I can see the trade-offs are worth it, other days I cannot.

[Anonymous]

Millennial dual fed family. We both now have better work life balance and house than our blue collar families. We had to take huge risks on debt such as student loans and large mortgages that would make both parents' heads explode but luckily we came out ahead.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My house is probably the same square footage but it’s a tall skinny townhouse with no yard versus a single story house on a quarter acre. It’s impossible to compare but I think we did ok. Eventually I would love a yard but I'm happy with this is my 30s.

I went from a townhouse to a SFH with a small yard last year (a pandemic purchase so we would have outdoors space for our kids). I have to say, so far with toddlers, the yard is overrated. It's just something to mow and weed. Still, I love the house and deck and patio, so I'm happy overall, but I could do without so much yard.

For us: A nearby park >>> big lawn. We got a row house with a big deck and patio near a park. We did a yard once, never again.

Totally disagree, and science agrees with me: green spaces are extremely therapeutic. Especially now working from home, being able to escape to my own oasis anytime I want, multiple times a day (I spent lots of $$ on trees and landscaping to make it nice), is priceless.

Garden >>> Lawn
I hear you on the therapeutic properties of green space. Mine is all garden and native plants...just working from home yesterday I saw hummingbirds, swallowtail and monarch butterflies, a box turtle, goldfinches and a ton of bees and other pollinators. I don't ever want to go back to the office!