Back in high school, when they taught such things, we had a domestic budgeting class. They taught us how to balance a checkbook, the dangers of compound interest, how to figure mortgage amortization, how certain financial instruments work, etc.
They told us that it’s all about expenses. Ideally, your housing costs should not exceed 25% of your income. 10% should go toward food and another 10% for clothes and toiletries. Another 10% for savings and investments. Another 10% for entertainment. I forget the rest. But that seems excellent to me.
Problem is, in cities like San Francisco and NYC, you damn-near have to make a billion dollars a year to pay 25% of your income for living space. The parameters have probably changed in the last 50 years. It’s one way you can tell that there has been a general reverse in wages during this time. But, if my generation would have also followed the 10% investment rule, they might have broken even or better. Who knows. It all went in one ear and out the other. I just wanted to pack a rucksack and see the world.