I’m a baby boomer.
I got married young and was done having kids by the time I was 30. I've owned a home since the mid-1980s (when I was in my 20s).
The world is different for young adults today.
My youngest son is engaged and starting the next era of his life. But the world looks very different to him than it did to me from that perspective.
When he wrote the first draft of this article, I was a little confused. Why does it matter? Would our audience care? Then I remembered how important it is to be able to see things from different perspectives and understand the minds and motivations of others.
People don’t tend to do things that they don’t believe are possible. How does the current “reality“ of the world and their life-view impact the definition annd pursuit of the “American Dream” for them?
It's not news to any of you that the cost of living is rising.
It always has been.
Unfortunately, the rising cost of living is juxtaposed with 50 years of wage stagnation.
Income inequality and middle-class living standards are a focus of both party's political agendas but can be pretty abstract.
VisualCapitalist put together a chart on the cost of the American Dream that I think is interesting.
via visualcapitalist
On top of stagnant wages, you have a limited supply of homes, an increasing cost of raising kids, and a generation that doesn't feel comfortable planning the next stage of their lives.
Today, the total cost of the American dream is approximately $4.4 million, exceeding the average lifetime salaries of men and women - at $3.3M and $2.4M respectively.
77% of U.S. households are unable to afford a median-priced home.
And fertility rates in America are at all-time lows, with over 36% citing affordability as a major factor.
While some are hopeful that the next 4 years will change some of this, it's likely broader changes and bipartisan support are necessary to reverse this trend.
What do you think would have the biggest impact on making the American Dream affordable? Or, perhaps a better question … How will the American Dream change, and what are the implications of that?
Let me know what you think.
