Millennials had it bad financially, but Gen Z may have it worse

By Abha Bhattarai and Federica Cocco, The Washington PostMove over, millennials. There’s a new generation being walloped by the economy.

By comparison, inflation-adjusted earnings for the cohort have risen much less in the same period, by 26 percent, federal data shows. Sarah Martin, a 21-year-old in Pittsburgh, started accumulating credit card debt a couple of years ago with impulse buys like clothing and makeup, after pandemic restrictions finally lifted. Things spiraled out of control with some emergency dental work, leading her to max out one credit card and come close to topping out another. In all, Martin racked up about $8,000 in debt, which she is still working on paying down.

Economists say timing is also important: The pandemic forced Gen Z to hunker down at home in their prime high school and college years, when they would otherwise have been out with friends, going to concerts or traveling. Many were eager to make up for lost time when the world reopened in 2021. Gen Z is coming of age at a very different time from millennials, whose early days in the workforce coincided with two recessions. Many struggled to get jobs, particularly following the Great Recession, when the nation’s unemployment rate hovered around 10 percent for over a year. Their wages took a massive hit, too. On average, millennials lost about 13 percent of their earnings between 2007 and 2017, according to economist Kevin Rinz.

In all, Gen Zers are expected to spend an average $145,000 on rent by the time they turn 30, compared with the $126,000 spent by millennials at the same age, after inflation, according to an analysis of Wyckoff is hoping to return to school. He has worked a series of jobs to save up - driving a shaved-ice truck and working as an assistant at a law firm - and is applying for scholarships and grants to ease the financial burden.

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Millennials had it bad financially, but Gen Z may have it worseGeneration Z is spending more on housing and car insurance than millennials did. They’re also more likely to be in debt, despite higher wages and more jobs.
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