Median is just a single person with no family insurance, we’ll deduct another $125 for health and dental
You have obviously never shopped for health insurance outside what your employer provides. You could probably add $800-1000 to that unless you could settle for a policy that doesn't actually cover anything. Oh, and scratch the dental benefits, as those are well beyond the reach of anyone who isn't wealthy.
Health insurance is a major tool used to lock people into their jobs and insurance companies give big breaks to larger employers, which further stresses the ability of small employers to compete for labor. It is likely more responsible for industry consolidation than actual product pricing. A single-payer insurance plan administered by the federal (currency-issuing) government isn't maligned by capitalists because it wouldn't work.
It is surrounded by myths and outright lies because it would not only work better, be less costly, and would restore much of the power of labor to make choices, including competing with established multi-national companies for market share in every segment. The kicker is that it would likely require a "tax cut" instead of the "payfor" politicians spout endlessly about whenever the subject arises.
The median home sales price is currently $408,100. As someone who works in the industry, I guarantee you Mr. Median is not going to have the $81,620 for a 20% down payment, so he’s going to put down 10%. At a fairly good rate of 4.5%, that would come out to $2,410 a month.
Interest is the largest portion of most house payments, especially those even remotely affordable to middle-class workers. A single percentage point rise in interest rates knocks millions out of any hope of ever owning a home at their present salaries.
This forces the housing industry to cater to better-qualified buyers, and that means larger homes with more features and land. Buiders can't cater to buyers who can't qualify for loans and remain in business. This is how we got McMansions as "starter homes" in the new housing market and how older homes now sell for many times their original price.
A course correction is required
This means our consumer spending cannot support these prices long-term.
America has had its day in the sun and is now only hanging onto memories of prior glory. Its major employers and productive industries (not counting selling each other stuff made elsewhere) are already moving onto greener pastures, and those are much more "socialist" countries where governments supply many of the basic needs of the people, leaving them with more "real" income to spend on lifestyles.
Wage growth spurred on by the Great Resignation was a good start, but we need to find ways to allow workers to keep this newly earned leverage.
Our corporate overlords saw this coming long ago and laid the groundwork to prevent it. They purchased our federal and state governments outright with massive campaign donations that the people could never possibly match in the auction our campaign finance laws allow. Getting the beneficiaries of those laws to cut thier own throats is probably not going to happen short of bloody revolution now.
Getting inflation under control by raising interest rates will help in some areas while simultaneously making mortgages, credit card debt, and car loans more expensive.
This is nonsense econ, but it is so widely accepted now that it passes for the truth without question. What part of making business or buying anything more expensive, while also injecting more government money into the system, spells "inflation control" to you?
What monetary policy (interest rates) can do is put the little guy in his place by stifling employment. The Fed even acknowledges this now as if the "public purpose" is served by government causing involuntary unemployment for millions and leaving $Trillions in productive capacity on the table. This is why politicians cry "socialism" whenever benefits for the unemployed are suggested. They want the working class shackled to their employer and the punishment for non-compliance to be as painful as possible.
