Are You In the Most Broke Generation?
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According to my mom and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, I was born in 1989, making me a millennial. Although I honestly wonder if I have Benjamin Button syndrome and I'm really a 68-year-old inside of a 34-year-old's body. Mainly because of my cantankerous spirit, my affinity for house shoes, and the fact that I use words like cantankerous. Plus, I only relate to one of these five

millennial stereotypes as reported by Buzzfeed. They don't want to settle down and get married, they can't afford to buy a home, they're obsessed with avocados, they're more focused on their personal life than their career, and they couldn't survive one day without their phone. Jokes aside, there's lots of stereotypes when it comes to the different generations, and I'm not just talking about why all you boomers out there love Minions so much. What's up with the Minions obsession?

So today we're turning to the facts to compare how the different generations are doing financially. And let me just say, there are some strugglers in the bunch. But before we dive in, let me remind you of how YouTube works. When you hit the like and subscribe button, you see more videos like this. So go ahead and click that like and subscribe to stay socially relevant. I mean, we've had 13 years of Minion content, guys. It's time for a refresh. And while you're at it, share this with a Minions lover in your life who could use a little dose of relevant reality. What?

All right, let's start by looking at the data. According to a recent study done by Ramsey Solutions, one in three Americans say they are struggling or in crisis financially. Big yikes. Am I right, Gen Z? You guys say that? - How do you do, fellow kids? - What? - Or as the greatest generation would say, gee willikers. And of course, as the silent generation would say,

So let's break down the struggle by generation. 31% of Gen Zers say they're struggling or in crisis financially. Millennials, 37%. Gen X, 35%. Baby boomers, 22%. So clearly the younger generations are feeling the strain more. And for one, the pandemic interrupted many of their high school and college experiences. Rude.

So integrating into the hashtag adulting world and workforce might have been a little delayed. Not to mention the student loan crisis is worse than it's ever been, and the average college grad is starting out their life $36,000 in the hole. In fact, close to half of those who took out student loans regretted it and actually regret their decision to go to college in the first place. I mean, that's deeper than your typical regret. Them's regerts. And let's just address the elephant in the room.

I don't know why, but I'm gonna cry.

Okay, so one third of us say we are driving the struggle bus. So let's take this down a level further to understand what exactly this means. Well, four out of 10 Americans have trouble paying bills and three out of 10 report having trouble affording food. And for Gen Z, 65% say they have trouble with bills, 47% say they have trouble with food.

Millennials, 59% for bills, 46% for food. For Gen X, 43% for bills, 32% for food. And finally the boomers, 23% struggling with those bills and only 16% for food. Probably because cream of wheat is always on sale. Well, go eat your creamy wheat and enjoy your Reader's Digest, Donna. Okay, some of us out here, we're just trying to digest gluten. Okay, we got bigger problems. And when it comes to affording rent and mortgage payments, millennials and Gen Z are more likely to have trouble making those monthly payments.

And while those numbers are sad and way too high, it makes sense considering that the majority of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck. That means they have zero margin for unexpected expenses. Which I mean, think about it. You can pretty much always expect unexpected expenses. You get sick. You hit a mailbox with your car because of a rogue spider attack. Your kid loses their lunchbox.

and their math book and their shoes again. You see, when you have no margin, small inconveniences like that become emergencies, and real emergencies become a full-on financial crisis that lead to this miserable paycheck to paycheck cycle. So it's clear that the younger generations have a harder time affording life's basic needs.

needs. But does that mean they're more broke than everyone else? Good question, Hasselhoff. Let's see how they stack up when it comes to debt. So looking at the average auto loan debt, we see that Gen Z has the lowest amount coming in under $20,000 with a monthly payment of about $450,000.

With the highest auto loan debt, Gen X takes the cake at almost $27,000 in auto loan debt with a monthly payment of $645,000. Now listen, Aaron, I'm not saying it's a midlife crisis, but $645 a month on that Mustang and asking people to call you Ronnie? Worry about you, buddy. So if you're keeping score, that is strike one for Gen X. ♪

Let's move on to credit card debt. Gen Z again coming in at the lowest amount of credit card debt with an average of $2,781 and an average monthly payment of 83 bucks. And who's winning the credit card game? Again, it's Gen X coming in at over $8,000 in credit card debt on average with a monthly payment of $233.

Now this one may come as a shock to you because I feel like boomers get the rap for being all about their credit cards, but Gen X is not messing around here. Now granted, Gen Z, you guys are still getting used to the feeling of your teeth without braces. You haven't had time to rack up all that credit card debt.

Next up, student loans. So when it comes to student loan debt, Gen Z has got the lowest numbers coming in at $15,456 on average in student loan debt. And who's taking the cake as the biggest loser? It's the baby boomers coming in with an average of $43,554. Guys, this one shook me.

I mean, boomers and Gen X with the most debt by a long shot, but I suppose this is what interest will do to you kids. And that's why you should stay away from interest and from drugs. Okay, now that we've covered the big consumer debt categories, drum roll please for all the debt totals.

Gen Z coming in with a total of $16,283. The millennials coming in at $48,611. Gen X coming in with $61,036. And finally, the baby boomers coming in at $52,401.

Congratulations, Gen X, you won by a long shot, making you the Brokest Generation. Now, regardless of who you think it should be and your feelings and where you're at financially, by the numbers, Gen X is the Brokest. I don't make the rules, okay? Now, what does this tell you about Gen X, our fellow Americans aged 40s to late 50s? Well, one thought is that Gen Xers are still taking care of their own children and often helping to support their aging parents, all while trying to save for their own retirement.

I mean, they're called the sandwich generation for a reason. And that reason is not just because they love a good sandwich. And sad fact for you, 20% of Gen X says they'll never be able to afford to retire. That's sad. So you tell me, who's worse off here? The millennials and Gen Zers who feel financially strapped or the Gen Xers with a boatload of debt to pay off? Now, regardless of your age, it's clear that if you're struggling with your finances,

you're in good company or not so good company perhaps. And what that tells me is that whether one generation had it easier financially than others is as my friend Joey says, a moot point.

It's like a cow's opinion. Every generation is going to have different challenges and factors to deal with, like inflation and social security insecurity and recessions and housing bubbles. Now, these economic circumstances are never going to be exactly the same as they were when the previous generation was in the same stage of life. So can we just please quit pointing the finger, saying someone else had it easier and it's these people's fault and it's the boomers' fault and if Gen Z would just...

Give it up, guys. Let's all be friends. How about we support each other and encourage each other to become debt-free and build wealth on our own terms, regardless of where we're at financially? And Gen Z and millennials, I know, wages haven't kept up with inflation. There's an insane housing market. And Gen X, I know you're stuck paying for your kids and your parents while struggling to pay off your own debt and save for retirement. And boomers, I know you're stuck wondering if you're going to be able to ride out your retirement on what you've saved. Will those golden years be gold or a little more bronze? Only time will tell.

So if you're truly feeling like money controls your every move, it doesn't come down to what generation you're in. It comes down to you, okay? Let's talk about how you can take back control. First, close your eyes and take a deep breath. That feels good. Now repeat after me. No matter what generation I am, no matter who raised me, I accept that the only person I can control is me. It's not all my fault, but it is my responsibility. Namaste.

Now you're ready for step number two, which is action. We've got to start making some money moves here and it starts with budgeting. And budgeting is just creating a plan for your money. It's literally you taking control of your money instead of it controlling you. And the boomers back me up on this because I know 82% of you rate yourself as an intermediate or advanced budgeter.

budgeter. You love an Excel spreadsheet. You taught us everything we know about pivot tables. And I know the word budgeting can sound intimidating or restricting and like the last thing you want to do, but it's actually really simple and really freeing. And if you want to learn more, check out my video on how to budget step-by-step. I'll link it below in the description for you. All right. Step number three is to get rid of your debt.

You see, debt is literally robbing you of your future and keeping you on this paycheck to paycheck merry-go-round. When you have debt, you're going to struggle to build wealth no matter what generation you are. Because think about this, you're spending this month's income paying for something from last month or last year or even last decade. I'm serious here. Debt is not your friend, okay? Get rid of it with a Daniel Day-Lewis level of intensity. Make everyone around you refer to you as Mr. President for a while. Hey, work for Daniel when he filmed Lincoln. I don't know, it could work for you.

Plus, it'll be fun. You'll have a good time with that. What in heaven's name are you talking about? And I can already hear your excuses for why now isn't the right time to attack debt. But can it, bucko? The thing is, there will always be reasons to put this thing off. So just embrace the suck and get over it with already. And I've got a foolproof plan for you to get out of debt once and for all with a method that will actually cause you to make progress. And I will link you to that article below. And it's the same method that I used to get out of debt years ago.

All right, step number four, you've gotta have an emergency fund. Now, while you're paying off debt, a thousand bucks is enough to get you started. But once you knock out all of that consumer debt, you're gonna need three to six months of expenses to be able to fall back on in a major life crisis. This emergency fund will stop you from ever having to go back into debt again.

That's the goal. And last but not least, step number five, you've got to be investing for the future, like literal investing into the stock market, into your retirement plans so that you don't retire broke. And I've got a whole video on this, on investing for beginners that I'll link below. Since I'm just dropping links like it's hot over here, might as well add one more to the mix.

Hey, Ron. Hey, Billy. Now there's a ton of other things we could talk about that would take you from feeling broke to taking control of your money. But these are your first steps to get started and get you back in the driver's seat. And just because I'm curious, I want to know which generation you think is the most broke and how you compare to your peers according to the stats that we shared today. Let me know in the comments and go ahead and share this video with a friend while you're at it. Maybe even try some cross-generational outreach. You know, I think you could log that for community service hours at some organizations. And know

Calling your grandma does not count, but you should do that anyways. Do that as soon as this video is over. Call her, she's lonely. All right, that's it for today. Thank you guys for watching. I'll see you next time. Oh, what if she's sleeping? What if I wake her up from her nap? Oh no, grandma left me on read.