The most remarkable part of this story is that it takes fewer and fewer man-hours to manufacture modern cars (which are laden with electronics and gadgets compared to their ancestors from 100 years ago).
This has been achieved through continued investment in capital equipment that automates nearly every step of the manufacturing process. And now, manufacturing doesn’t all happen in one place. Typical car parts are manufactured in dozens of countries, and raw materials are sourced from even more.
This supply chain is continually honed and tested for efficiency, and when one supplier lowers quality, raises prices, or fails other tests, large manufacturers Ask other suppliers for that part. .
In stark contrast, during the same period, a three-bedroom late Victorian house in the suburbs could be bought new for around £250.
For example, in 1896 the average annual income was around £70, so the price of such a house would have been around 3.5 times the average annual income. And in 1896, there was no income tax on average incomes, all of which were supposed to go toward personal and household expenses.
According to a government study released in 2017, housing is shrinking. Before 1919, the average size of a three-bedroom semi-detached house was approximately 1,300 square feet.
Currently, the average size of a newly built three-bedroom semi-condo is approximately 850 square feet. While there are certainly technological advances that modern homes boast, such as much better insulation, central heating, and modern lighting, the core quality of a home’s construction is important. Modern homes are probably cheaper than pre-1919 homes.
Victorian houses had greater wall mass, roof and floor timbers were larger and stronger, wood and stucco decorated moldings were the norm, and joinery was of high quality, sturdy and long-lasting.
For all these reasons, they remain very popular and are very suitable for renovation and the introduction of modern technology to make them as comfortable as modern homes.
Additionally, average lot size has shrunk dramatically, with 25% of pre-1919 homes having backyards more than 65 feet deep. Since 2002, only 5% of homes had lots this large.
And here is the most dramatic difference: the average price of a house in the UK is now £290,000.
The average salary is £35,000, so housing is on average more than eight times your normal salary. No wonder housing is at the top of young people’s financial worries list.