It's tough for youngsters today

Looking at this now, it looks like a fishing thread.  It's not.  Just interested in people's views.

For the sake of balance: expensive electronic devices, avocados, fancy cars, takeaways...

Well, they just need to work harder at school, at uni, and at work ie be more competitive. It's no different to youngsters from within and outside the UK who've been coached and repeatedly told so. Reality beckons for The UK youngsters!

Totally agree with I agree with Nick.
We definitely had it a lot easier.
However, I’m still baffled why young people were mostly remainers.
With less competition from European and non European workers, there has to be more training places, higher wages, and lower house prices,
due to less demand. Or am I over-simplifying things?

The majority of the present British youngsters only want are easy passage into The European countries eg no visa, one currency, etc on thier holidays. But, anything to better their life eg further education, work, etc which could require the learning of a new language is a major deterrent to them.

A good and free education here is still the envy of most modern countries in Europe and elsewhere even uni where a student loan is payable at 9% per £1k above an agreed threshold income of eg £25k per annum) - if lower no payment until the threshold income level is exceeded; a good degree in a sought-after field eg doctor, engineer, etc, will almost ensure uni debt will be no more or not for long (after a specific number of years); low pay is not an issue; the housing away from London (London is not the be all and end all/other major cities in The EU are no different either) are much more affordable.

A uni degree is the passport away from poverty and hardship, all things being equal eg good health, and no unforeseen adverse luck.

Poorer than their parents? A new perspective on income inequality

The real incomes of about two-thirds of households in 25 advanced economies were flat or fell between 2005 and 2014. Without action, this phenomenon could have corrosive economic and social consequences.

Most people growing up in advanced economies since World War II have been able to assume they will be better off than their parents. For much of the time, that assumption has proved correct: except for a brief hiatus in the 1970s, buoyant global economic and employment growth over the past 70 years saw all households experience rising incomes, both before and after taxes and transfers. As recently as between 1993 and 2005, all but 2 percent of households in 25 advanced economies saw real incomes rise.

Yet this overwhelmingly positive income trend has ended. A new McKinsey Global Institute report, Poorer than their parents? Flat or falling incomes in advanced economies, finds that between 2005 and 2014, real incomes in those same advanced economies were flat or fell for 65 to 70 percent of households, or more than 540 million people (exhibit). And while government transfers and lower tax rates mitigated some of the impact, up to a quarter of all households still saw disposable income stall or fall in that decade.


Read all about it ……..

https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/employment-and-growth/poorer-than-their-parents-a-new-perspective-on-income-inequality

in large parts of the country in real terms houses are no more expensive than they were 30 years ago, if people want to pay telephone numbers to live in London,knock yourselves out

But if you were born in London and your family and friends live in London and you work in London it is difficult to move away so you can buy a flat .It was hard for my parents , easy for me but now hard for my kids....

Kids today just want more without having to earn it.

Really , all kids ?

In context of the OP yes.

suppose its easy for those living up north over the last 40 yrs to travel down south for work,happy that its funding their family home back home in the north, where their house prices hasnt increased 20 fold in that time

I rent out a 2 bedroom garden flat in Dulwich, it's easily worth £800K grand. Sounds ridiculous but that's what I would get for it no problem whatsoever.

I'd take that 800 million if I were you slippy.

I disagree but the only evidence I have is based on my own situation . University was free so I had no debt , I was never skint and my first house cost three times my salary . University debt now is around 50k for most students and the house I lived in would cost you ten times a comparable salary ......

to Charlie

I live close to London, what so special about London? I pay a visit now and again (if necessary), but would I want to live there? Absolutely no way. And with today's technology even work could be done away from London mostly.

A friend's dad leased out his former big grocery store in Greenwich now converted into a Turkish restaurant with two rooms for £25k per annum. I think it's worth over £1m at least now.

Pretty much the same where I live that is eyeball. Midlands.

Sorry I meant £4 per month.

I meant £4k per month (got it right finally).

Yes HGS . It is very hard to get a mortgage now .

I have a lot of time for today's kids (10-16ish) in that they often seem very polite, respectful of older people, quite aware of world affairs (if somewhat naive), willing to help and supportive of friends, etc. But they want irrelevant stuff as in in phones, trainers and takeaway meals.

Yes they also want to go to Uni but that's not because they're intelligent it's because what they do.

Eyeball
Uni was free for me, I had a grant as well. The misses and I had bought a house at the time and interest rates touched 15% which meant we both had to get a job (two for the misses). There were no frills. It was hard work.

its not hard to get a mortgage for 100 to 200 grand which buys you a house in 90% of the country,its hard to get one for a million pound same way it was 30 years ago

Save up,work hard and do without,as man have done befor,simple solution to get what you want but too many want it all straight away.

The problem with todays children is that they often make an unwise choice when selecting their parents.

^^
Indeed. One can select one's friends but not one's parents. It's so unfair!

However, I’m still baffled why young people were mostly remainers.
With less competition from European and non European workers, there has to be more training places, higher wages, and lower house prices, due to less demand.

Precisely.

But the blindingly obvious seems to go over the heads of many kids despite their education.
Mind you that seemed to go over the heads of most labour supporters under Blair.

When I was working with the unemployed for a while I found many of the more lucrative jobs asking for a criminal records check and many of the youngsters unable to apply for it due to what was often no more than a one-off misdemeanour; a one-off scrap in a pub for example. As a youngster myself I often found myself in awkward situations that may have involved the police, but back then it was a warning or just a slap on the wrist; it was just kids being kids. Today, some kids are ruined before they even begin.

Excellent point aspro, my grandson very nearly ended being put on the sex offenders register by a primary school clown at the age of 5 ! His crime ? Peeing in a puddle on the playground !!!!! That would have stayed on his file through school,the useless snowflake is still there teaching.