6 ms·

Not really. Millennials certainly face different problems than previous generations but it would be generally inaccurate to say that they are financially worse

Not really. Millennials certainly face different problems than previous generations but it would be generally inaccurate to say that they are financially worse off. Going back to that article you linked, I have to take the opposite stance in terms of its quality. Articles which rely heavily on anecdotes to make their point are really not a good way to try to understand what constitutes "typical". In fact, they're mostly useless for that. If you want to understand what really is "typical" then you really need to dive into some dry and boring data releases. Let's use the BLS Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers Archived News Releases found here https://www.bls.gov/bls/news-release/wkyeng.htm https://www.bls.gov/bls/news-release/wkyeng.htm These reports provide reliable information about median weekly earnings for full-time workers, are available online going back to 1996, and include more specific data about different age groups. Let's compare the age range of 25-34 in Q1 1996 (non millennials) to the same range in Q4 2019 (millennials) while adjusting for increases in cost of living using CPI-U. Here are the major spending categories assessed in CPI calculations https://www.bls.gov/cpi/questions-and-answers.htm#Question_10 https://www.bls.gov/cpi/questions-and-answers.htm#Question_1... For ages 25-34: Q1 1996 weekly earnings: $419 % change in CPI-U over duration: + ~66% Q1 1996 weekly earnings in Q4 2019 dollars: $695.54 Q4 2019 weekly earnings: $815 % Increase in real weekly earnings: ~17%

fragmede 7y ago
The plural of anedcote is not data, but there's more to financial better/worse off-ness than comparing the percentage change in Consumer Price Index.
- thunderbird120 7y ago
  As the comment states, that calculation is the change in real weekly earnings. "Real" being calculated using CPI-U. To reiterate, the purchasing power of the median weekly earnings for the 25-34 group is 17% higher now than it was in Q1 1996.
  - thebradbain 7y ago
    “BLS data collectors visit (in person or on the web) or call thousands of retail stores, service establishments, rental units, and doctors' offices, all over the United States to obtain information on the prices of the thousands of items used to track and measure price changes in the CPI” At least from that sentence and a cursory glance at categories collected, it doesn’t appear they’re specifically factoring in mortgages / home ownership aside from rents nor medical insurance aside from one-off clinic visits (which, given CPI is a snapshot of purchasing power at a given time and not a measure of lifetime household wealth, why would they?). I don’t doubt purchasing power has gone up — private car ride hailing, specialty juices and cleanses, avocado toasts, food delivery, organic foods, wellness products, travel, hotels, all the once-expensive things people love to criticize millenials for buying are truly more accessible than ever. That doesn’t definitely say anything about how much the cost of long-term financial obligations such as education, insurance, and home ownership costs, however.
    - thunderbird120 7y ago
      Buildings and other structures are considered capital goods and investment items rather than consumption items as they provide a service and may appreciate over time. This is why mortgages aren't counted in CPI calculations. https://www.bls.gov/cpi/factsheets/owners-equivalent-rent-and-rent.pdf https://www.bls.gov/cpi/factsheets/owners-equivalent-rent-an... As for medical costs, it's more complicated but as an overview: The CE (consumer expenditures survey) tracks consumer out-of-pocket spending on medical care, which is used to weight the medical care indexes. CE defines out-of-pocket medical spending as: patient payments made directly to retail establishments for medical goods and services; health insurance premiums paid for by the consumer, including Medicare Part B; and health insurance premiums deducted from employee paychecks. https://www.bls.gov/cpi/factsheets/medical-care.htm https://www.bls.gov/cpi/factsheets/medical-care.htm But you're right, there are still plenty of problems. Like I said in my original comment, the problems faced by millennial are different than those faced by previous generations. Often these new problems can be considered more stress inducing due to a higher degree of initial commitments required to even enter many new fields (i.e. student debt) and uncertainty about the future. Whether these new problems are worse than the problems which they largely replaced depends on your definition of "worse".

fragmede 7y ago

The plural of anedcote is not data, but there's more to financial better/worse off-ness than comparing the percentage change in Consumer Price Index.

thunderbird120 7y ago
As the comment states, that calculation is the change in real weekly earnings. "Real" being calculated using CPI-U. To reiterate, the purchasing power of the median weekly earnings for the 25-34 group is 17% higher now than it was in Q1 1996.
- thebradbain 7y ago
  “BLS data collectors visit (in person or on the web) or call thousands of retail stores, service establishments, rental units, and doctors' offices, all over the United States to obtain information on the prices of the thousands of items used to track and measure price changes in the CPI” At least from that sentence and a cursory glance at categories collected, it doesn’t appear they’re specifically factoring in mortgages / home ownership aside from rents nor medical insurance aside from one-off clinic visits (which, given CPI is a snapshot of purchasing power at a given time and not a measure of lifetime household wealth, why would they?). I don’t doubt purchasing power has gone up — private car ride hailing, specialty juices and cleanses, avocado toasts, food delivery, organic foods, wellness products, travel, hotels, all the once-expensive things people love to criticize millenials for buying are truly more accessible than ever. That doesn’t definitely say anything about how much the cost of long-term financial obligations such as education, insurance, and home ownership costs, however.
  - thunderbird120 7y ago
    Buildings and other structures are considered capital goods and investment items rather than consumption items as they provide a service and may appreciate over time. This is why mortgages aren't counted in CPI calculations. https://www.bls.gov/cpi/factsheets/owners-equivalent-rent-and-rent.pdf https://www.bls.gov/cpi/factsheets/owners-equivalent-rent-an... As for medical costs, it's more complicated but as an overview: The CE (consumer expenditures survey) tracks consumer out-of-pocket spending on medical care, which is used to weight the medical care indexes. CE defines out-of-pocket medical spending as: patient payments made directly to retail establishments for medical goods and services; health insurance premiums paid for by the consumer, including Medicare Part B; and health insurance premiums deducted from employee paychecks. https://www.bls.gov/cpi/factsheets/medical-care.htm https://www.bls.gov/cpi/factsheets/medical-care.htm But you're right, there are still plenty of problems. Like I said in my original comment, the problems faced by millennial are different than those faced by previous generations. Often these new problems can be considered more stress inducing due to a higher degree of initial commitments required to even enter many new fields (i.e. student debt) and uncertainty about the future. Whether these new problems are worse than the problems which they largely replaced depends on your definition of "worse".