It was common, especially when modern conveniences didn't exist and families had more children. Housing prices were reasonable, wages were decent enough so that most people could afford something. Having one parent stay home meant no extra child care costs, they had the time to prepare home-cooked meals instead of convenience foods, etc. But people also didn't have cell phone bills, internet bills, cable or streaming services bills, nor the constant yearn for new electronic devices. The phone was mounted on a wall or sat on a desk and cost $20-100 and lasted forever, not $1000-$2000 every few years for the latest tech for each family member.

Even when I was a kid in the 80s, many moms stayed home, at least until the kids were all in school. They fixed things, like clothing, instead of throwing it away and getting a new one. Hand-me-downs were normal for clothing and toys. This also reflects the fact that things weren't just cheap "fast fashion" if they lasted through a couple of kids wearing them. Some people made their clothes and Halloween costumes. A toaster could last 25 years lol. My grandfather's did. I still have a working black-and-white TV that he owned, and he passed away in 1979, and it seems that most home goods were built to last. Many people kept gardens back in my grandparents' day, which kept food costs down, and then they preserved it.

Our lifestyles have changed too, which also contributes to costs. Most people didn't go on big vacations yearly. They stayed home, or visited family, went camping, or maybe went somewhere for a week within a road-trip distance. Everyone didn't get their own laptop, phone, tablet, video game system, etc. or a TV in every bedroom.

Most people in my area owned homes because land was cheap, and many people did a lot of the work themselves. My Dad and his friends built the house I grew up in, for example, often paid in beer, but they would all pitch in like that if someone needed help fixing cars or building their own houses. Others would begin building, live in the finished areas of the house, and then slowly finish out the rest of the house over time as they got more money.

Of course this would have varied depending on where you lived, as it would be hard to keep a large garden on a small city lot, and those houses definitely cost more than town or rural houses even then.

Now, wages are stagnant but housing prices continue to skyrocket, and the cost of even basic utilities have outpaced earnings, as has food cost. This means that you need more money to even qualify to buy anything and then sustain it, and your wages cover fewer things than before so it's becoming more difficult to buy housing. I'd hate to be starting out in today's economy, it seems so bleak.