The white picket fence has long stood as the iconic symbol of the American Dream — the promise of a suburban home, a stable family, and financial security.
It’s a vision immortalized in movies like Pleasantville and TV shows like Desperate Housewives, representing postwar hopes of success and comfort.
But with that prospect now out of sight for many a new, grimmer dream has emerged.
Gen Z, those born between 1997 and 2012, now harbor more humble dreams of living debt free, according to a new report.
Those aged between 13 and 28 currently carry an average of $94,000 in debt, Newsweek reported.
This far exceeds millennials, with an average balance of $60,000 and Gen X, with $53,000.
Gen Z are burdened by large student loans as well as sky high rents, leaving little income left over to save towards the costs of home ownership.
At the same time house prices have rocketed to new highs, rising roughly 50 percent since 2020.
The suburban dream of white picket fences and immaculate lawns seen in Desperate Housewives
Around a third of Gen Z say they’re financially underwater due to a combination of high interest rates, inflation and stagnant wages, Natalia Brown from National Debt Relief told Fortune. `
‘Many [Gen Zers] are entering adulthood with a heavy financial burden — student loans, credit card debt, and rising costs of living,’ Brown told the publication.
‘Their debt feels heavier because it hits earlier—right as they’re launching their careers.
‘Add in credit cards, medical bills, and buy-now-pay-later, and the result is a dangerous snowball effect,’ she added.
Gen Z currently make up just three percent of all home buyers in the US, according to the National Association of Realtors.
Mortgage rates, which remain stubbornly high at nearly seven percent, are making monthly payments too much for many younger workers.
The median home price in the US is also more than $403,000, making a 20 percent deposit a tough ask for many too.
‘The cost of homes is substantially higher than it was for previous generations, and you may not see as many starter homes being built or becoming available,’ Nikki Beauchamp from Sotheby’s Realty told Fortune.
Gen Z are being forced to give up on home ownership and focus on paying off debt
The longstanding aspiration of home ownership has been reflected in TV shows such as Pleasantville
Gen Z currently make up just three percent of all home buyers in the U.S.
‘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 [Gen X] did at that age.’
To add insult to injury baby boomers are further pricing Gen Z out of home ownership by swooping in with all-cash offers and bigger down payments.
With decades of savings from low mortgage rates, boomers have overtaken Millennials, Gen X, and Gen Z in home purchases.
For young families who still want to make a go of home ownership, help from the bank of mom and dad is a popular solution.
For others the option is to move to a more affordable area, such as Wichita, Kansas recently named the most affordable US city.
Known for being the longtime home to aircraft manufacturers like Beechcraft, Wichita is the 48th largest city in the US with a population of more than 389,000 people.
[H/T Daily Mail]
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