Mobile phone vs house dulls society

I see it the same way. How many man-hours does reasonable research in house construction cost? And then also in the form of work in which one has the least routine, because self-directed research is neither a school subject nor required in various trainings.

On average, humans are too lazy to perform this work with focused attention for hours. Because it is difficult and constantly confronts one with their own inadequacies. Who wants that?

The cost/benefit argument is rationally correct but does not make the work any easier. And humans are not pure rational beings.

But they never have been. One of the things that has nothing to do with digitization. More with the structure of our education system.

hm 2 complex things and people too lazy. Selling myself on the phone = 500€ sunk. House = divorce

You are completely right from a purely rational perspective.

But humans are psychologically wired that way. You might want to get Daniel Kahnemann’s recommended book “Thinking, Fast and Slow” sometime. You will be amazed at what grand cognitive errors have been proven as completely normal in large empirical studies. Because people never really use their slow thinking to question their fast thinking.

For planning a house build on a limited budget, the capacity of deliberate, slow thinking is not enough compared to the shortcuts our mind likes to take, for some (a few? many?).

This could be trained, but our schools are not designed for that.

The simple truth is: for more complex projects, a kind of intelligence is required that not everyone simply has.

Anyone can compare cell phones. But this cannot be transferred to building a house.

There are 453m2 of living space and I don’t have to justify that. But I agree with you that there are more important things in life. Do you hoard your old mobile phones? No resale or return for recycling? That’s more wasteful. As Alex85 already wrote earlier, many certainly have a hobby or wishes that others consider pointless. Fortunately, everyone can decide for themselves what is important to them.

The new mobile phones from Accesspoint**** are certainly expensive but no one is forced to buy them. Many receive new mobile phones every year through a corresponding contract or want or need the new features (e.g. dual SIM). The best mobile phone for the environment is one that does not have to be produced. Accesspoint**** is now powered 100% by renewable energy. The tin for the new Iph*** comes 100% from recycling... VAT is also paid on every mobile phone. So some of it flows back to the state or society. There are many things that are incredibly expensive and not everyone can or wants to afford them. Everyone has to set their priorities for themselves. For example, my phone is now three model cycles old and the battery has already aged significantly. I will order a new one. The old one will get a new battery and then be passed on within the family.

What bothers me more is when someone falls victim to consumption mania but can’t afford it. Afterwards, one shouldn’t complain if there is no equity left for building a house or something similar. Many in society want everything and do not realize that this is not possible. Everyone has to "stretch according to their ceiling." For some this ceiling is higher, for others lower. But it’s not about the strictly necessary. Otherwise, none of us would have detached houses...

Building/buying a house is much more complex than buying a mobile phone. There are also no prefabricated tests for house building. But some builders approach the matter too naively and don’t invest enough time. Contracts are not read properly and afterwards one wonders, for example, why there is only one power outlet in the living room. Building a house is one of the biggest investments in life after all...

When buying a mobile phone, a layperson does so without further assistance. There are tests for that and one understands it. Building a house is complex, one invests a lot of money and therefore buys expertise, e.g. through an architect. Unfortunately, not all are good and in the end, surprises follow one after another. Exactly what one wanted to avoid.

It remains idiotic that people spend more time researching devices that cost a monthly saving rate than they do for a house, viewed in terms of the amount. But the reasons for this have already been mentioned. Personally, I find it much worse with cars, as that involves significantly more money.

Just for reviewing and researching financing documents, I have already spent much more time than I will ever spend on phones. And even back then, I noticed most people just sign it; the advisor will only try to sell you the best (for them). Our advisor was already slightly irritated when we removed the Wohnriester because it wasn’t suitable for us; apparently, it cost him a bonus.

Btw, I have an iPhone X, my employer insists on it and provides it to me with the appropriate flat rate. Meanwhile, I have been sitting in my half-renovated house for years and driving a 14-year-old used car... which surely also gives the wrong impression.