I read a lot about how this generation can’t afford housing etc but it seems to me that I know a bunch of 20 plus year olds that have bought houses and vehicles. They may need to fix them up but they are doing it by working. I’m the last year boomer but there has always been the ones who work their rears off and keep their jobs and the ones who won’t show up and eventually are canned . Am I nuts or is this what everyone else has noticed in their own lives .

Theres people that sacrifice to get ahead and people that don’t know the meaning of the word that lack any work ethics.

Same observation. I have a few nieces/nephews that are ambitious and very successful. A larger group feels entitled and are basically lazy, some still relying on their parents in their 30's. Several of those are looking forward to inheriting assets from me since we never had children. They will be disappointed.

I think it's probably harder for me to afford things than it was for my old man. His dollar seems to have gone further than mine does today. At the same time, my generation finds things to spend money on that they simply don't need. They need to have a $1000 phone with an expensive plan, need to have a high end computer and gaming system, can't cook for themselves so go to the restaurant several times a week. I'm the only one who works in my household, and I manage to keep food in guts and diapers on butts. Things might be tougher financially, but I think a lack of work ethic plays a big role. It's not just the high cost of living, it's the cost of living high.

I agree but things always cost money but like you said people need stuff that wasn’t even thought of 60 years ago and growing up we never knew what a vacation was and I still don’t know what Disney is about

Gen X here.

Nobody told us about "work life balance."

We work like slaves, save, do without, invest and love to moan about it.

Obviously there are exceptions.

But I agree, inflation and other factors (many self induced) are making it harder for the kids.

I see a more willingness to work from young folks with a rural or small town back ground than from the urban areas and bigger cities

The problem is , yung people today didn't have to walk 5 miles through 30" of snow up hill both way to and from School.

I see three different types of "kids" - I'll lump together 35 year old and younger and I am very sure the generation before me often thought the same.

1. Hustlers. - They have some book smarts, a heck of a lot of common sense, and work ethics that are nearly indescribable. These kids work any angle to make a buck. Work a job PLUS, flipping crap on marketplace, ebusiness, guiding, investing,... doesn't matter what. OR they saw past going deep in college debt and got educated quickly on jobs that provide training and $$$$ career paths. I know a few young men and women that weld, electrician, plumber...that are making 70-100K + They don't chase dreams, they steam roll through them. Maybe at most 5% of the kids.

2. The next work force - Book smart, some street smarts, had heard their entire childhood life they needed to go to college in order to get a "real" job. Brainwashed into thinking any physical labor job was to be looked down upon in the quest of having it better than their parents. My opinion is many of these kids got out of college without a specific drive to achieve and was struck with disappointment that their Bachelor's degree only got them an entry level job.

3. Forgotten Ambilocal cords - Some how, they escaped the nursery without every having their cords cut. No drive, no ambition, no desire. The world is screwing them, everyone is against them, and they are the victim. Well, I blame a lot on egg and sperm donors. They had nearly 20 years to teach their kids how to set goals and be successful. Instead, they taught them to be lazy, suck off the system, and expect everything to be given to them. Earning something is absolutely out of the question. Everything is supposed to be free.

For those of you that think I have a poor view of the kids today, your right - I do. Every day I listen to my kids gripe about how miserable it is that the majority of people they deal with is sickening. They have more issues with people than I do. But they suffer from the jealousy of others. Somehow my kids became "the problem" in the eyes of others. I just tell them welcome to being a minority and laugh at them. Pretty strange concept. I taught my kids that if you want to make 80, 100, 150, 250K a year, pretty basic formula. If your employed by someone and make 65K a year and you want 100K, well you have about 280 days to work with to make an extra 35K. Thats about $125.00 a day or an average of $32./hour if you work an extra 4 hours a day. Well both girls mostly pay cash for everything. NO CREDIT cards, nearly no loans, no high debt ratios. Yet I see some of their friends carrying negative debt ratios and have next to nothing to show for it. What a surprise.

I grew up with high interest and inflation had a 17% truck loan in 1980 but 40 buck coons and 70 buck reds helped

Lots of trustafarians here

As a trapper anecdotal evidence is important, in economics it’s useless. There’s no debating the fact that income to cost of home ownership is higher now than it’s ever been in the history of the United States. Sure, interest rates have been loads higher in the past but purchasing power hasn’t been lower. Gold (accounting for inflation) is an easy example of how weak the dollar as well as other currencies have become over time.

Great write up Randy!!!


Pretty much sums up everyone,,,,not just kids

Don't forget barefoot.

So I would say Randy pretty well hit the nail on the head. Like others said as well, many young people say around 18-25 have no drive and are looking for easy money, think they're worth more etc.

I will point out though that over here for me, glass costs for my window jobs went up 70% during covid. groceries doubled, housing is 2-4x the cost and the wages sure aren't. I could go on but essentially the cost of living is out of control. At the peak, the cost of living was worse than the great depression but people now aren't freaking out as bad because the opportunity to work is absolutely everywhere. There's a ton of wealth here in north America now.

The middle class is disappearing, and young people nowadays are either going to be quite well off or end up paycheck to paycheck until they can't. I have friends up the road I'm probably going to end up doing a complicated roof for free for because it's blowing off and they (she has a lower end job, but still a "good" paying government job, he's a red seal heavy duty diesel mechanic with a company truck so no vehicle costs there) they have two young kids, 4 and 2, and they're in danger of losing their home despite working OT as much as possible, every month they go a little deeper in the red (we live an hour or so out of town, so her fuel costs are around 500$ monthly alone plus daycare is 1500$).

This all being said. Every generation seems to have a windfall of some kind. "boomers" as they've been called are cashing out on homes right now making a huge ROI, and downsizing so they could screw up have nothing for retirement and still land on their feet.

I'm turning 34 in august, so I believe that makes me a millennial? (shudder) We have a huge opportunity via the trades and real estate. I've worked my guts out from a blue collar family making terrible wages as a carpenter and treated terribly from bosses, now the table is flipped and I'm making a good enough wage fairly reliably that my 30 year old wife may be able to retire and stay with the kids.. fingers crossed.

But like I say, i worked my guts out6-7 days a weeks, built the skillset, and rolled the dice. we live very humbly, grow and hunt our own food, I do some of the vehicle maitenance, she bakes bread, birthday cakes, hangs out laundry to sun dry etc. we save everywhere we can. We're hoping to start into new construction & real estate within a couple years and I do self builds and pocket the difference.

In the end, statistically speaking, kids nowadays are almost all screwed. a small percentage will rise to the top, the rest though, the average joes that save every penny and work 40-50 hours a week will be lucky to get by and pay rent. We saw it coming and tried to get ahead of the curve.

A new truck taxes in sticker price is 95k for a 1/2 ton F 150, a house that was 150K 5 years ago is 3-400 without even trying. wages for a carpenter went from 25 or so to 30 or maybe slightly better in our area. It's a losing fight unless a person hustles extremely hard, and statistically speaking, most don't make it.

I don't know anyone in their mid twenties, who hasn't bought a house. Houses are definitely more expensive, but wages are higher too. I think the young people, who can't afford houses, mostly live in extremely over crowded areas, where the demand for housing is very high.

Keith

Buying a house is easy


Owning a house is the important part

Is it harder than in my day?
Absolutely!

Is it impossible?
Not at all.

My youngest got a degree, was underemployed.
And unhappy.
COULD have set around, and complained , but didn't.
Did a 180, jumped into the trades earlier this year.
Driving crazy distances, working crazy long hours.

But doors are opening for him.
The right doors.

I was looking at properties thinking about buying more rentals. Seriously take a look at what things have been selling for and what you get. I admit I'm behind the times on prices But houses are way more expensive To buy dollar to dollar inflation adjusted compared to the past. All I could think about is how can any young couple afford it! But interest rates are lower even though folks are crying about them. Wages have not keep up with inflation, Manufacturing jobs that paid good living wages have been shipped off shore for cheap labor, and lower cost to do business with less regulation like lack of safty and environmental protection. There are still good paying job around but not as many or easy to get as they were.


Now a lot if young people want it now and keep up with the Jones is compounded with social media and they want it now . It used to be the neighbors new car, stove, golf clubs that got people but it was a smaller group people you knew. Today it's wide spread in your face and only shows part of the story on line. It leaves out the debt the new stuff creates


To many single parent homes, poor roll models, lack of financial education all play a roll. It can still be done but it's tougher than it was. yes a ton of the younger people I have been around have different priorities. No problem with that untill they complain about the situation they are in due to what they prioritize.

Nothing wrong with taking that nice vacation, new car, nights out clubbing. But when you barrow money for that vacation or could have paid off your credit card instead, the car straps the budget, and the night out blows your extra cash AND Keps you from working the next day don't cry about not being able to afford a house during to prices!

Few save and an amazing # are what I think are lazy putting themselves in their situation. Absolutely but there are still not as easy as it once was.

They all are not lazy. But I expect every generation says the new is just the same as each crew at work thinks they are the only crew that does the work. My boys were on the job at 7am this morning for one of the guys they mow for digging trench by hand to help him (older guy) get one of his water lines replaced. earlier in the week they did the under the house stuff for him. They mow, weed eat, shovel snow, clean gutters, and put down mulch so far and now dig in the last 6 months


It's also about personal choices. I will also use the boys as an example. They typically work together and split the profits. So have made the same amount of money same influence ect. But the oldest has 2/3rs more money saved from this year in the bank. The youngest 12 spends more and the oldest 15 saves and likes to invest showing interest in building wealth. He brought me a of cash a few weeks ago wanting to put it into " stocks or something" so he getting another brokerage account, and Roth set up next time I'm off and dig out his social security #

Harder but doable. If I were to do it today, and because the high cost, I'd work my tail off and buy a house and rent out the extra rooms to my friends for a year or two. Then see if I could refinance and afford it without their rent.