Originally Posted by
liampboyle
That's what happened in the US back in the 80's - Our poverty computations were all based on the cost of food originally as that was the largest household expense in the era, but starting in the 80's (possibly slightly before, I was too young in the '70's to care about much besides starting grade school) the cost of housing started to exceed all other standard cost of living expenses by a great deal.
Housing costs went way down in the Great Recession. But now rents, especially, but also house ownership, are going up a lot, although you can still find great bargains. They told us in high school to budget about 25% of income for housing, but now it's 30% or even 40%. At least around here in the so-called rust belt.
Food from the store is cheaper now but restaurant food (other than fast food) has gone up a lot. The quality of food I think has gone up a great deal since I was a kid in the 1960s and 70s.