It sounds like we're roughly the same age, so I won't go completely into "get off my lawn" mode. But most families in the 80s could not scare up $3K easily, it was a boatload of money; and if they could, it was for emergencies.

It's easy to remember our youth, and think of how easy it was. And it may have been for us (well, I was working or in college most of the 80s), but not our parents who foot the bills.