Weekly Wisdom | Gen Z Despair
The Future Isn't Bright
Most mainstream media and Twitter influencers are finally noticing the bleak economic prospects of Generation Z. One aspect of the American Dream is the belief that future generations will generally do better than prior generations. Unless the trajectory changes, many millennials and Gen Z members will be worse off than their parents. And the consequences of that for the United States and the world will be devastating.
Dive into the facts:
The median age for a first-time homebuyer is 40, the highest ever. With mortgage rates above 6% and homes at record prices, this isn’t surprising. At this point, a starter home is not in the future for many in Gen Z.
Total outstanding student debt is $1.78 trillion, with 8.2% of that amount belonging to Gen Z. This amount will rise as more members of Gen Z complete college or enter college.
As AI advances and corporations seek to be more efficient, the market for first-time job entrants is the worst since 1988. 13% of the current unemployed are new graduates or first-time job seekers, who are mostly Gen Z.
Since 2020, the U.S. dollar has lost 25% of its value, which means the cost of living for the lower and middle classes has skyrocketed. This inflation has especially affected Gen Z as they are asset poor compared with other generations.
If the United States economy under President Trump doesn’t deliver lower prices and broad-based growth, we should expect Gen Z to embrace increasingly radical figures like Zohran Mamdani. The politicians that pledge to shake things up will be the ones that win future elections. Most rational Americans would prefer that President Trump be the one to break the established political and economic order and free it of corruption. So my advice to President Trump is GO BIG!!
