Firstly - while there are plenty of places in the US to find houses with $150-200k mortgage there are rarely tech jobs on those locations (and the jobs that do exist in those locations dont pay the obscene salaries you hear of.) Of course there are always some exceptions (handful in Texas.) And if you get a job in some odd location, lose your job, good luck finding another one in the same down if you dont live in SF/SV/NYC. You'll also lose massive equity in the house you'll be fire-selling since sales fees/taxes/insurance/lawyers/inspections are ~7%+ all in.

In the center of tech-job-land (SF/SV), you're looking at a $1M mortgage if you have a family you dont wish to raise in a 640sqft studio. Part of what you're paying for is the pool of jobs and easy availability of work.

Secondly, I lived quite frugally in my early career. This is much harder 10yrs in...because those choices affect my children. What do I give up on? Braces? Health? Here in the US you get nickle and dimed on literally everything, and especially on healthcare.

Finally, you are missing a major hidden cost -- risk. Numerous tech jobs can rarely survive 10yrs. Often, you find yourself out of work in the worse economy finding a new job when prevailing wages are depressed. Tech isnt like government, or teaching, or medicine -- there are harsh cycles. Worse, in those cycles, often your company stock/options are also worth farless/zero.

I'm literally going through a purchase of a home on 5 acres, riverfront, workshop and pole barn for ~$300k, within commuting distance to a large midwest metro area.

$300 is the purchase price, not the mortgage.

Salaries around here for skilled software engineers are typically $100-150k, depending on years of experience and field.

A friend of mine in the same area is working remotely for a major SV company making $175k.

For the love of whatever you consider to be holy, don't think that the SV lifestyle and cost of living are representative of the country as a whole.

This completely understates the tech world outside of SF/SV/NYC. There are tons of tech jobs outside of these locations. And the pay differential isn't even close to compensating for the increased cost of living in the bubble cities.

And sure, it can be tough to find a tech job that lasts 10+ years. But that's true of a lot of jobs. Tech jobs don't have to be in "tech" companies. Lots of businesses have tech jobs in house; insurance, healthcare, etc etc. Unless you have a burning desire to work for the FAANGs of the world, there's a billion tech jobs out there.

While individual jobs in tech may not last, the tech industry is much less risky than the rest of the economy. There is a perpetual and widening gap between supply and demand of talent. It’s been one hell of a ride and it ain’t ending anytime soon.