The guy from the OP is a dick. There may be some decent advice buried in what he is saying, but how he is saying it, and the position from which he is saying it make him an asshole. My wife and I bought our first house in 1994, I was making $24k/yr, and my wife was raising the kids at home. Having been in the Air Force, I was able to get a VA loan, and buy the house with no down payment. Even twenty years ago, a salary like that would not have been much, but was a living wage. We certainly weren't living an extravagant lifestyle, but we also didn't have to scrimp and save, or give up much of anything. Had I not been in the military, though, things might have been different.
Fast forward to 2002, we moved from Florida to St. Louis, sold the old house in a good market, and used the money we got from the sale for the down payment on the new house. I was making about $30k/yr then, once again a modest income, and without the money from the sale of the old house, we would have had trouble buying the new house. As it was, finances became very tight over the next year, and my wife had to take a job to make ends meet. Now I make more money than I could have imagined 15 years ago, but we are in the same house, having refinanced twice, and we have the principal down to about 2/3 of the original value of the house, which is likely worth more now. We are considering moving again in the next few years, to what will hopefully be our last home purchase.
Looking at my millenial kids, and what they are facing, however, tells me more about the current situation than my own home ownership history. My kids are both older than I was when we purchased our first home, and they are in no position to buy a house. It isn't because they splurge, but because they get paid shit wages. My son was in the Navy, but has had a hard time keeping a job since he has gotten out. He was denied for a VA loan when he had a decent job, but that was probably a good thing, as he lost that job not long afterwards. He and his wife both work now, and make shit wages. Between the two of them, they probably make a living wage, but because they both have to work, they also have to pay for day care, which aint cheap. They have had trouble getting an keeping reliable transportation, and got ripped off to the tune of $1000 on car that turned out to be junk earlier this year. I gave them my old (2011) Jeep to use until they can afford something decent on their own, and I don't really anticipate getting it back. Without going into detail, my daughter is in a similar situation, but unmarried. Luckily, she and her daughter have a good roommate that keeps up with her side of the bills.
Neither one will be able to afford a home any time soon, and it aint because of Starbucks, and fucking avocado toast. It's because they get paid shit wages, and have little hope of that improving any time soon. So, fuck that millionaire real estate developer guy. Shit aint easy for millenials because of assholes like him who don't see a problem with paying people shit, and then blaming them for not having the money to buy a home. I am willing to bet that any millenial he might be employing are making the lowest wages he can legally get away with paying them, and he would gladly pay them less if he could.
