Young adults are poor despite every metric which suggests otherwise
This article explores the disconnect between positive economic metrics and the perceived financial struggles of Millennials and Gen Z. It argues that structural changes have made traditional middle-class milestones like homeownership and family formation significantly harder to achieve.
Why it matters
It highlights a growing generational divide in economic stability that standard government metrics often fail to capture.
A recent article from The Cut received a huge amount of attention: ‘It’s Hard to See My Parents Live So Lavishly While We’re Struggling’. The piece includes vignettes of Millenial hardship:
The virality of this piece prompted a discussion between Louise Perry and Rob Henderson: ‘The politics of the downwardly mobile class’.
Rob disagreed with the Cut article’s perspective:
I disagree! I think that Millennials and Zoomers are not doing fine . In fact, I think there have been structural changes to our economy and society which clearly explain why these cohorts are failing to move through the five pillars of a stable middle-class existence: education, stable employment, marriage, homeownership, children.
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