inflation

Being alive in the United States has gotten awful pricey. The toll is especially hard on younger people who want to live in or close to big cities, where the majority of the jobs and opportunities are.

Rents have skyrocketed, especially since the pandemic, and that's left a lot of Gen Zers scrambling for workarounds and solutions. Microapartments—affordable housing that just barely has room for a bed and an electric stove—have become popular. But having more space or, God forbid, buying a home have become increasingly out of reach for all but the wealthy.

What's fascinating is that cost of living isn't nearly as strenuous in many other places around the globe. For example, one American woman who recently moved to China showed off her extremely affordable apartment and it had viewers' jaws on the floor.

Alexis Oliana recently took to TikTok to give a tour of her apartment outside of Shanghai, China, just a few days after moving in.

"This apartment is two beds, two baths, and it's only $390 a month," she begins, already piquing everyone's interest. There aren't many places in America where you could find a deal like that, even if it was a little rough around the edges.

Her apartment is anything but.

The tour begins in the kitchen which, she admits, is on the small side, but perfect for her and her daughter. The living room, however, is spacious, clean, and modern with lots of natural light.

"All of the apartments in China and most of Asia come furnished so you don't need to worry about buying anything," she says as she pans the camera over a fuzzy white couch, a sleek coffee table, and a stylish floor lamp.

From there, she shows us a huge wrap-around balcony with a built-in clothesline for hang drying clothing. A second door off of the porch leads to an office that Oliana uses as a sewing room and play area for her daughter.

The master bedroom has a beautiful master bath and a little cushiony window seat, making it feel extra homey.

"You literally can't beat this for less than $400 a month. Which is crazy because my apartment complex—it had no amenities, nothing—wanted to up my rent $400 this year. Increase it $400 this year. I'm not even paying $400 to live here," she says.

See the whole tour here:

And for the kicker, Oliana says when she moved in she talked to someone working for the apartment complex about paying for internet. He said it would be $50.

"How do we pay it again?" she asked, assuming the bill would come due again in a month. The man told her that it would be $50 for the whole year.

For reference, the average American is paying about $78/month for internet.

"I'm never going home," she jokes.

Over a million people watched the tour of Oliana's $390/month apartment. And many couldn't believe their eyes. While the space was no luxury penthouse by any means, it was an extremely stark contrast to what's available on a similar budget in America.

"None of us are broke we just live in America," one commenter said.

"This would be 2500-3500 in the United States," another added.

"That would be 5k to 6k in America not furnished and no balcony," estimated another.

"The propaganda and conditioning went strong in the USA, because why are people paying 1,500 for an old and dilapidated efficiency getting paid the barest of minimums and making it stretch so one could eat, the USA is insane," lamented another user.

It's not just a gut feeling most of us have. Experts agree that the rental market in America is out of control. One study from Harvard University found that 1/3 of Americans who work full-time cannot afford their housing costs. The study also found that 83% of low-income renters are spending over a third of their income on rent, and many are spending more than half. That's not sustainable.

It's not just rent, either. Food is significantly cheaper in China while basic grocery costs balloon in the U.S. Of course, the cost disparities are less noticeable the closer you get the center of big cities like Beijing, where cost of living is significantly more expensive than in suburban or rural areas. Still, living in China on average is far more affordable.

Case in point: In another video of Oliana's, she takes her daughter to see a specialist at the hospital with no insurance and no appointment. In the end, she pays about $6.

Of course, living in a country like China comes with its own challenges.

For one, citizens and media are heavily censored by the government there and many Western websites like Google and Instagram are banned. Some areas can also be incredibly crowded. (You've likely seen the images of people being packed onto trains like sardines.) Air quality is historically bad in many parts of China, though it's gotten better in recent years.

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The lesson is not that China is the perfect place to live, but Oliana's story highlights what could be possible right here in America with a few changes.

It's just not acceptable, sustainable, or conducive to a thriving economy to have citizens spending almost all of their income on rent, food, and healthcare. For too many Americans, there's simply nothing leftover. Oliana's story also shows what might happen if those with the means and flexibility to leave the country (say, remote workers) chose to do so.

Oliana, by all accounts, is having a great time raising her daughter in China, sharing videos of going to amusement parks and taking late-night walks without fear. It's easy to imagine it will be hard for her to ever move her family back to the states and pay 5x more for a similar apartment.