Posted on 10/22/2022 4:35:57 AM PDT by FLT-bird
The data says millennials don't lack work ethic, but they'll never be able to afford what other generations take for granted. The popular millennial copypasta goes something like this:
First experience with serious job hunting comes on the heels of the 2008 financial crisis Can't take advantage of correction in home prices because too young to have made any money, and wage growth stagnates anyway Homes rocket to new highs, no chance of catching up now by just working a 9-5 like your parents Late 20s/early 30s, try investing as it's your last chance to make it Get obliterated again by a global pandemic and an actual war in Europe Hold the course, keep buying, you're smarter than that! Get obliterated again by massive inflation which leads to a gigantic stock market dump wiping out years of gains in weeks with no end in sight Oh yeah, and you were dumb enough to buy crypto on top of it all But it's not just a meme. Millennials (those born between 1980 and the mid-90s) earn less than their parents did at similar points in their lives – less even than pensioners – and their outlook is bleak.
A quarter of a century ago, young adults earned more than national averages – allowing them to have a fulfilling career, buy a house, and start a family – all by the age of 30. Now, in at least seven countries, this same age group is earning at least 20% below that of all other age demographics.
"It is likely to be the first time in industrialized history, save for periods of war or natural disaster, that the incomes of young adults have fallen so far when compared with the rest of society," reports The Guardian.
And it's not just isolated to the United States, this rings true across the globe. The UK, Canada, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, and Australia – all major economies, major hubs of hungry, talented, creative young adults who simply do not have the means to live their best lives.
It's not a coincidence that governments and NGOs have started to push for something called tiny house living, which normalizes living in small boxes.
Unison's 2019 Affordability Report calculated how long it would take a potential homebuyer to save for a 20% down payment across the country's top metros, and found that it would take 14 years under absolute ideal conditions.
Pulling data from the LIS: Cross-National Data Center, the largest database of international income levels worldwide, The Guardian found that not only are millennials poorer than retired folks, prosperity has plummeted drastically for all millennials across the board, worldwide, and prospects for a recovery look bleak.
This data provides concrete statistical opposition to the oft-heard misplaced accusation that the millennial generation is lazy, lacking work ethic, and expecting rewards in exchange for zero hard work.
No, we are not “hitting our milestones” later because we are entitled children with sloth tendencies, we are hitting them later (or not at all) because they are essentially impossible to hit, financially speaking. We are a cursed generation.
How are we expected to save up for a house when 75-year-olds make more money than us? When with a combined salary of $100K, a couple in their 20’s cannot afford to have careers, kids, and a house? Most importantly, how are we expected to live up to the American Dream when we simply can’t afford it any longer?
The fact that this is not simply an American issue should speak volumes. It is far easier (albeit nonsensical) to blame the "character" of an entire generation than consider the fact that previous gens have totally fucked us over.
For the first time in recorded history, the younger are making less money than the oldest. If we don't do something drastic about it, we could, also for the first time in recorded history, see an age-based revolution.
I and many others my age DID manage to get utterly smashed by the Great Recession in 2008 and several years thereafter in what should have been some of the prime years of my career. All of our lives there has been a giant overhang of the Baby Boomer generation. In all kinds of jobs for all of our lives there has been a massive cohort of people who had 10-20 years more experience than we did and who were always going to have more experience than we had. That has made it extremely tough to climb up the ladder in our careers.....until the last couple years when they started retiring in droves and suddenly things started looking a whole lot better for us for the very first time.
House prices rose far faster than inflation and were already quite expensive as measured by a multiple of salaries by the time we were in a position to buy. College tuition also grew far faster than inflation from the 1970s when we were little kids until the 90s when we were in college and/or grad school.
We too were called "slackers" by the ignoramuses in the corporate media who didn't know a damn thing about us but just wanted a talking point.
Don't think you're the first. You're not.
The deal your parents' generation got was the best ever. They didn't have a massive generation just ahead of them. Houses, and tuition were cheaper for them and stocks did better when they were in their prime investing years. No other generation should expect to get circumstances that fortunate again.
Deal with it. We did. Now it FINALLY appears to be our time. It will be yours one day when we shuffle off to retirement.
Whining about generational shoulda woulda couldas is loser talk.
Yeah, you guys had it rough.
As the old saying goes, misery loves company...so join the party. And, hey, there's a silver lining. Weed will soon be legal, so, if your retired moms and dads will kick in some cash, you can stay high while you whine about your miserable life.
“When with a combined salary of $100K, a couple in their 20’s cannot afford to have careers, kids, and a house?“
In 1966 my father was earning what would be 55000.00 today. He’d paid 14,000.00 for our house 4 years earlier. My mother didn’t work. This was par for the course. Someone has stolen a HELL of a lot of the value of money from Americans. A HELL of a lot.
I’m not saying everything was easy nor am I blaming the Boomers for having been born when they were. I don’t feel any bitterness towards them - my older brother and sisters are boomers.
I just say they got a very good deal in terms of college tuition, the stock market, house prices and advancing up the corporate ladder. I stand by that. They did get a good deal as compared to other generations. That’s not their “fault”. There’s no bad guy here. They just had some fortunate timing.
Notice how you generally don’t hear Gen Xers constantly whining about the fact that conditions weren’t as good for us? The Millenials sure do like to whine - AND furthermore want to blame Boomers for....being born? existing? things being better in their formative years?
it strikes me as envy and to use a current phrase, “butt hurt”.
..,and they’ll keep voting for more taxes, more government, and less freedom....and wonder why things are getting worse.
I graduated from college in 81. Took a job in Denver just in time to watch it all collapse. We had B.E.B. (Big Empty Buildings) that were at capacity 5 years earlier. Moved back to WI. Took so-so jobs to stay afloat. Did not get a good job with a path until 1986. The condition of the economy when you enter the work force is a big factor.
A sense of entitlement does not help. Neither does getting a new iPhone every other year.
We were told we must downsize, learn to do with less, etc. (although the rich and politically-connected would still be allowed their mansions and big cars...).
Reagan came along and the 80's were great.
Well, the creation of the entity that caused that (The Federal Reserve) pre-dates all of the generations alive today. (And for those who enjoy social media style pedantry...the oldest person in the world being just born when it happened != a generation)
One also should note that the standard of luxury most of us (even the poor) live in is MASSIVELY higher than it was in 1966. We expect a lot more creature comforts.
All of this is teetering on the edge of crashing into the abyss right now anyway. VERY few people appreciate the breadth of the coming crash and just how badly it is going to ripple across EVERYONE of EVERY generation. Some people delude themselves into thinking they’re safe. They are not. Are some worse off than others? Yes. But nobody will escape unscathed from what’s coming.
A sense of entitlement? For wanting to be able to afford to buy a house? For wanting the things their parents and grandparents took for granted?
Allow them the small pleasures of their iPhones. They're not getting much else.
"A sense of entitlement does not help. Neither does getting a new iPhone every other year."
Also Boomers:
I don’t know My millennial daughter is now married, owns a home, has a wonderful husband and two beautiful children.
Now, granted, her house is a dump — but they’re fixing it up so they can live in a nice school system. They live very modestly — but so did we while we raised her.
She also works in finance, so she’s smart. I attribute really most of her success to smarts and a good moral foundation. She didn’t squander her time, didn’t give into co-habitation and all the nonsense that comes with that. She’s never lived high on the hog unless she really wants something nice — but she’s just not materialistic.
I look at a lot of these kids and they’re enjoying nice cars, fancy clothes, non-stop trips to Vegas, the Caribbean, you name it. They don’t settle down and get serious until their 30’s at least. I don’t know — it’s not all anything they can blame on us older folks. They seem to want things that we considered rewards after years of hard work. Then they wonder why they can’t afford the 20 % down payment.
I am not too worried about them. They will eventually inherit all our stuff.
1973-1975 recession.
First Arab oil embargo. Something we chose not to learn from.
Jimmy Carter - stagflation, energy prices shooting up, 18% mortgage rates, not to mention disco and polyester leisure suits.
GOOD TIMES!!!!
And then helping the kids that got whacked by the 2008 real estate disaster and Great Recession as you call it.
Every generation has a sad story to tell. And because it is so personal, it's the saddest story of all time.
It's not how many times you fall down. It's how many times you get back up.
Preach it brother, just turned 50. This is my third recession, 9/11 then 2008 bust lost nearly everything. My life has been a jenga tower but i’m back lol
My kids travel to far away places every year. They eat out a LOT, and always have the latest gadgets. They buy fancy clothes and drive fancy cars. They live in places where the cost of living is some of the highest in the country.
Yet, they blame me and my husband and our Boomer generation for their financial woes, like not being able to afford a house.
I don’t have fancy clothes, cars, trips around the world, or any of that stuff, but we do have a home on an acre and a half of land in a nice little Midwest town. I cook almost every meal. Rarely eat out, maybe once every month or two, and that’s maybe all we eat out.
They act sometimes like we’ve had it easy, and maybe we have, but we sure as hell don’t overspend the budget. We have savings. They make poor financial decisions every day with their lifestyle.
Tired of hearing the complaints.
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