I don’t know much about economics, but I think wealth inequality and affordability issues may both be effects of other causes, like: neoliberal capitalist government policies, advertising ubiquity, and unprecedented consumer spending relative to earnings (eg, credit card debt).

I like the saying “buy less, be more” and I think it illustrates how society’s doing the opposite. Dual earner households are the norm yet many seem to have less money to spend than generations before. So long as people need a new ‘smartphone’ every year or two and are overly dependent on services like food delivery or meal prep kits they’re probably not going to be able to build savings. (For those making more money, replace ‘smartphone’ with brand new car.) “The cost of conformity.”

I remember working a summer job in the financial industry (which I’ve spent very little time in). I heard of a boss who pushed new, young employees to get expensive car leases as soon as they joined the company. With that monthly bill on their books, those workers couldn’t skip a beat at work. My point is that until “consumer spending is too low” for the capitalists’ fancy, (the threat of) poverty in other people is profitable for the ultra rich and these trends will likely continue