Source: Fortune
Summary
Gen Zers are struggling to achieve the American dream of buying a house due to increasing costs of homeownership and high levels of personal debt. According to a report by Realtor.com, only 3% of homeowners in the US are Gen Zers. The generation is saddled with paying off student loans, credit cards, and buy-now, pay-later arrangements, with the average Gen Zer carrying over $94,000 in personal debt. High interest rates and stagnant wages are also contributing to the struggle. Financial advisors recommend paying off high-interest debt first and avoiding buy-now, pay-later services.
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The numbers tell one story. Gen Zers are falling behind in homeownership due to high levels of personal debt. The median home price in the US is over $403,000, while the national average wage index is about $66,600. It would be essentially impossible to purchase a median-priced home without spending more than one-third of your monthly income on housing. “The cost of homes is substantially higher than it was for previous generations,” said Nikki Beauchamp, an associate broker with Sotheby’s International Realty. “Add to that the student loan debt, and in general, it has been my observation that as a result they have much higher debt than my generation did at that age.” The American dream has become paying off debt, not buying a house.
Author: Evan Null
