Millennials are not doing nearly as well economically as baby boomers were when they were young, according to Young Invincibles, a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C.
Young adults age 18 to 35 earn lower incomes, are less likely to own a home and have a lower net wealth than people in the same age range in 1989, according to "The Financial Health of Young America: Measuring Generational Declines Between Baby Boomers & Millennials."
The only area where the young people today are better off is in saving for retirement, according to Young Invincibles. Millennials own more retirement accounts than baby boomers did at the same age, although that is probably due to the switch from defined benefit to defined contribution plans, the report says.
Young Invincibles is dedicated to research on and advocacy for financial security for millennials. Created in 2009 during the health -are debate that resulted in the Affordable Care Act, the organization has grown to include its headquarters in Washington and five regional offices across the United States.
In addition to the research aspect of its work, Young Invincibles seeks to influence national and state policies, and does local events to bring attention to the issue of financial security for young people. It is funded by a long list of foundations and endowments.
The latest report, released Monday, analyzes the economic challenges facing today’s young people and looks at the financial security of today’s young people compared to their parents. The report says millennials have amassed a net wealth half that of Boomers at the same age. They earn $10,000 less in inflation-adjusted dollars than young adults in 1989, a decline of 20 percent.
In addition, when baby boomers were young adults, they owned twice the amount of assets as young adults today.
“These findings uncover that millennials have been set back significantly, by not just the Great Recession but by decades-long financial trends, resulting in major generational declines in financial security between millennials and baby boomers when they were the same age,” says Tom Allison, deputy director of policy and research for Young Invincibles.
“Millennials make up the greatest share of the workforce and the largest generation in history, so in many ways the situation facing young adults today forecasts the financial challenges ahead for the nation,” he adds.
The report breaks out different demographic groups and finds what it describes as “stark and disturbing” differences. Young African Americans’ median wealth has declined by a third since 1989. Low wages continue to exacerbate racial disparities, as young African Americans and Latinos earn 57 cents and 64 cents respectively for every dollar earned by young whites, the report says.