Victorian economists worked out that in 1495, peasants had to work at least 15 weeks a year to earn the money they needed to survive. By 1564 it was 40 weeks. Now it is impossible for one person on average wages to buy a home in south east England and live reasonably in it: that requires two salaries.
The 20th-century predictions that we would all soon relax into a leisured life, fuelled by technology and the effects of compound interest, have not come true. Some flaw in the economic system has conspired to turn us instead into slaves to our mortgages.
Why does the system work like that? There is no definitive answer, and most economists don't even ask the question, but here are some possible reasons:
Burgeoning debt: at least a third of the price of the goods we pay, or the rooms we rent, goes on interest payments to cover the money borrowed. An average 28% of the income of UK business goes to service their debt.
