...and I'm assuming you've got some killer rent control, or some other non-scalable, non-replicable housing situation. That's neat for you, but it's meaningless to anybody else.

I signed the lease in the past two years. So rent control has kicked in once. I have a room in a shared apartment. There are plenty of open rooms on Craigslist for similar rents. I'm not saying life will be great but it's entirely possible to live in the city on $50k/yr.

Most adults do not consider having a "room in a shared apartment" to be adequate. A living wage allows you to rent/mortgage a place of your own. What I'm hearing is that $50k is not a living wage.

You're out of touch. It might not be common for families, but it's very common for young adults to share an apartment. And you're trivializing what activists are trying to do when they talk about making sure people have a "living wage."

As an only slightly older adult, let me assure you that after years of petty arguments, no-fault evictions, playing Craigslist roulette for new roommates, sitting in massive group interviews to compete for a room, other people's animals ruining your shit, etc. ad nauseum, "a room in a shared apartment" will stop being an acceptable option. I never thought I would get there either. Just give it time.