Are Millennials Worse off Than Previous Generations?

Millennials are underperforming in comparison to older generations such as baby boomers. They face rising housing costs, are burdened with excessive student loan debt, and in general have been struggling in the workforce. Learn more in this episode of USMR Market Insights with Patrick Brunson.

Are Millennials Worse off Than Previous Generations? – Video Transcription

Patrick Brunson:              00:00
The financial struggles of millennials have been very well publicized in recent years. This is the generation that was born between the years of 1981 to 1996. Now, what's unique about this particular group is that they came of age during the Great Recession. The aftershocks of this event are still felt by millennials today and as shown by contrasting them against previous generations. CNN has reported that compared to how baby boomers did at the same age, millennials have underperformed economically. For Americans born in the late eighties, only 44% have jobs with a stronger status than baby boomers when they were at the same age. A larger percentage of them, 49%, have jobs with weaker socioeconomic statuses. Rising education costs have contributed to millennials' woes as well. Data from the labor department has shown college tuition has climbed more than 1375% since 1978. That's quadruple the rate of overall inflation for the same time frame.
Patrick Brunson:              01:03
Student loan debt in the United States has also quadrupled since the start of 2005, climbing to over $1.4 trillion. This information comes from data provided by the New York Federal Reserve and it's been speculated that the damage from the 2008 financial crisis may force more Americans to take out more loans to pay for higher education. While these rising higher education costs have hindered millennials, they've also been hurt by rising housing costs. According to researchers from Harvard university, the typical U.S. home currently sells for more than four times the median U.S. income. This is a hefty increase compared to the 1980s and 90s when home prices were closer to three times household income. Renting has also become much more expensive. According to the Census Bureau data, median rent hit an all time high of $1,008 a month in the second quarter of 2019. So for a better understanding of the effects of market corrections in the past, such as the 2008 crisis, call the number on your screen to get U.S. Money Reserve's latest special report, U.S. Stock Market Crashes: Lessons from the Losses. This report provides many of the causes of previous market crashes and corrections. So click the link below and call the number on your screen right now to get your copy and please give us your thoughts and share this video. If you're watching us from YouTube, please subscribe to our channel so that you don't miss a single episode. I'm U.S. Money Reserve's Patrick Brunson, and thank you for watching Market Insights.