You can actually buy decently made appliances nowadays, it's just that the majority of people don't want to spend that much money. A $300 washing machine in the 50s was much better than a current washing machine at the same price but that amount of money in the fifties is $3000 now. A $3000 modern washing machine would probably blow the 50s one out of the water.
Unless you buy insane super-appliances, long-lasting appliances typically cost 2-3 times the consumer average.
I bought a Miele washing machine in 1996, and it's still being used today. It was about twice the price of machines that I'd had to before that never seemed to last more than a few years.
