The "Real Reason" Why Millennials Don't Buy Cars And Homes: They're Broke; Remember -- This Is The Worse Economic Recovery In US History; Unemployed Rate High; Underemployed Rate At Record Levels; Record Number on Disability; Record Number Using Food Stamps; And It Isn't Getting Better For Urban Youth (Think Detroit)

Updates

Later, 3:36 pm: Above, I noted it "wasn't getting any better," but I honestly did not think it would get worse so soon after the original post.

Just after posting the note below, broadcast media said Tesla was raising the price-point for its most affordable car. I can't make this stuff up.

Here's the story. PlugInCars is reporting: 

The long-term vision of Tesla Motors has always been to enter the mainstream auto market with high-volume electric cars. Its niche expensive models—the Roadster and Model S—were positioned as luxury stepping-stones, to build experience and brand awareness as it moves down market to affordability.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk told Bloomberg last week that his company expects in three to four years to offer a car to compete against the Nissan LEAF—claiming that Tesla’s future affordable mass-market car will cost “below $40,000.”

Wait a second.

I thought the bogey was $30,000. At least, that’s what Musk told Newsweek’s Fareed Zakaria in July 2008. “We think we could either directly or in partnership with a major auto company actually get to a car that is under $30,000 in four years,” he said. If taken at face value, that would mean a $30,000 car by, well, this year. (I realize that Musk said this prior to the financial crisis.) 

Wow, it's been that long? 2008 plus four years = 2013?

For the millennials, I guess.

And now the "inexpensive" model is $10,000 more expensive. [BOE: 10/30 = 33% increase in price and no sign of the car.]

Original Post

Don sent me a link to this story: Yahoo!Finance is telling us the "real reason" millennials don’t buy cars and homes. I saw the story earlier and had not planned to post/comment on it, but I gave it a fair amount of thought. Then when Don sent me another article with the same theme, I thought it worthwhile to note my thoughts for my granddaughters some years from now.

My minimally edited reply:

I saw this story (different paper, different writer) but same theme.

My first thought: urban-centric; east-coast-centric writer.

1. Midwest: folks need a car

2. California: folks need a car

3. NYC, Boston, DC: huge population centers; relatively robust public transportation system; skews the data.

4. The story kind of reminds me of Aesop's fable: the wolf that couldn't reach the grapes (too high) and walked away, rationalizing they would be sour grapes any way.  There seems to be a stable of writers who write from a different planet. But go to any airport news stand, and look at all the magazines where cars are featured.

5. To me, this is a just a story to help make those who can't afford a car to feel better about their lot in life, that they are not alone. But, I bet any 18-y/o in NYC, DC, or Boston, who was offered a free Ford Mustang or a free F-150 would jump for it.

6. I don't often have a car, but that's not by choice. I love driving. The article, when I first saw it, was simply fluff -- suggesting the writer, as I noted above, was urban-centric, east-coast centric. But the muscle car is alive and well in California. And, if anything, the young Hispanics love muscle cars. I bet the same in Florida.

And guys don't get gals without cars:

Modesto, California, Car Show
There's a reason following the release of the movie "Cars" that, according to wiki, related merchandise, including scale models of several of the cars, broke records for retail sales of merchandise based on a Disney·Pixar film, with an estimated $5 billion in sales.

Modesto, California, Car Show
I don't think automobile manufacturers have anything to fear.