[MichaelOldfield]

Come on. How can you not be able to buy a house with an engineering degree? It's one of the best degrees out there.

Define buying a house.

[ace32229]

Here in the UK:

Average mechanical engineer salary (mid-career) = £45k Max mortgage based on salary = ~£200k Average house price = ~£292k

-> Most people with an engineering degree cannot buy a house

[wuiheerfoj]

Most people with a mechanical engineering degree cannot buy an _average_ house - not quite the same

[ralferoo]

There are several counter arguments here.

Most people with an engineering degree are probably in a relationship, so they don't need to buy a house on a single salary.

There are plenty of houses for sale below the average price, just as there are plenty above.

Buying isn't necessarily the best option anyway. House price returns in the UK are somewhat below stock market returns, so as a pure investment it doesn't make sense. Unfortunately, we have the narrative in the UK that we should aspire to own houses, but that doesn't mean it's necessarily correct!

[MichaelOldfield]

That means you can buy a house a little below average. With a spouse straight up can.

[nine_k]

For instance, buying a house in Bay Area. Realty around NYC is not very affordable, too. But such places is where the engineering jobs are.

[lupusreal]

If you get a real engineering degree instead of computer science slop, then your options for where to live and work (without relying on WFH trends going the right way for you) open up substantially.