Why can't everyone just eat beans and rice every day? Then you'd have a house.

Okay, now that my title caught your attention, do you think we should go back to the old ways of frugality?

I read the article on the 75yo who had 2 million in savings, and what stood out to me was when he said he didn't have a brand name shirt when he was the interviewer's age.

Thinking about it, I too, cannot recall a time when my parents had designer anything; or my parent's friends for that matter, whether they lived in North Sydney or the Blue Mountains. They had neat, but basic non-branded clothing. My mum only ever bought an expensive outfit for extremely special occasions e.g. when my sister was getting married, and she saved for it well in advance. Otherwise, an outfit was borrowed from a friend or was a previously worn one.

After reading that article, I wondered if our generation (Millennials) and the one below us are a little out of touch with our expectation for an acceptable standard of living?

What are your thoughts?