I'm sure there's a whole host of factors at work here. There are skyrocketing costs for higher education. Housing prices heavily tilted toward those who are "already in the game". The price of gasoline has more than tripled in the past 20 years. And wages for us working schmucks remain relatively flat when adjusted for inflation. We just don't have tens of thousands of dollars to sink into depreciating assets.

Is it cause for alarm? No, I don't think so. For decades, we've been one of the few cultures wealthy enough to be able to drive everywhere for the simplest of tasks--the Canadians and Australians being the other major culprits. Like it or not, the long-term economic trends we're seeing are going to force a major sea change in how our country functions. I see us evolving back to an era of more densely-populated cities and towns, more walking, and less driving. Obviously, some cities and states are better prepared for this shift than others. Some will decry such a shift as *gasp* "European". I don't think it's a bad thing--after all, this is how the United States largely functioned before World War II, and the massive government-sponsored social engineering program that developed afterward.