Millennials: The Broke Generation?

I was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan.  I am a baby boomer, but both of my parents grew up during the depression.  That experience left its mark on both.  While we would have been considered a middle class family we did not have much.  The house where we lived during the fifties was really small and crowded for a family of six.  When we moved to a larger house it was closer to town, instead of in the suburbs.  Even then, it required my mom going to work to make ends meet.  There was one car and my dad was a "drive it till the wheels fall off" kind of guy.  After graduation I bought my first car, a 1956 Plymouth, for $75.  Not exactly an extravagant lifestyle.  In comparison to my parents, Barb and I have a more than comfortable lifestyle.  Until we retired, we both worked full-time, but we more than got by.  We own our own home and have two cars in the driveway, albeit both were bought used and would hardly be considered luxury models.  As I observe our oldest son and his wife, I see a similar lifestyle.   I would hope for the same thing from our youngest two children and their spouses. 

I recently read a newspaper article that casted some doubt on that possibility.  The article was by Washington Post columnist, Michelle Singletary, and titled Millennials' Financial Misfortune.  It reinforced what I had heard previously.  Millennials might be the first generation to end up worse off than their parents.  Part of the issue is that many of them lack basic knowledge when it comes to finances.  Across the board, they tend to spend more than they make,  The article references a study by Ameriprise Financial, "A majority of those polled feel stretched by car payments, credit cards and other bill."  On top of that only 57% who had access to a workplace retirement plan are contributing enough money to take full advantage of the employer match.  Data from Pew Research underscores all this information.  In addition 51% of them acknowledge that they don't expect there will be enough money left in the Social Security System by the time they retire. 

During my years at Lutheran High I taught a class titled careers.  It was a required course for all first semester juniors.  Part of the curriculum focused on college and career planning, but there were also units of life skills.  We talked about time management and budgeting while in college.  There was also a unit on long-range financial planning and the dangers of buying things on credit.  I still hear from former students thanking me for that experience.  Unfortunately, that course was dropped from the curriculum when I left.  That's typical.  Our educational system puts the emphasis on academics, but often misses the boat when it comes to life skills.  The responsibility instead is left to parents and older adults, and sad say, we are not always the best role models.