I am doing a business trip for a couple of days and before we did that it was the time for the bills. My least favourite time of each fortnight — about once a fortnight, after payday and before the bills are due, we sit down and pay stuff. And the money flows like water: much of it (like rates) we can do nothing about except mutter that the students vote reliably left and leave those of us who live in the town with increased bills.[1]
A couple of days ago a couple of the millennial relatives were discussing if they are millenials and where is the change of generations. I’m not sure. what I do know is that we have a lot of poorly educated people — they are fully credentialed, but they cannot think or work. Most of them do not make enough to meet the rents (too high) and the grocery bill[2]. And many, if not most, get some support from the parents.
To this I do not hold. I moved out of town, and that meant that the boys had to find somewhere to board. Or run a car. Or use our limited bus service. They chose to board or flat.
At one point in time in America, living at home with mom and dad after crossing out of your teenage years and into your 20s was embarrassing and something that was generally avoided at all costs. And while hard times come and go, 20-somethings who were forced back into their parents’ care worked their tails off until they could save up enough money to once again regain their freedom.
But, these days millennials seem to be embracing the free room and board provided by their parents. According to a new study from the Census Bureau, roughly one-third of all millennials live at home with their parents and one-fourth of them can’t be bothered with enrolling in school or finding a job.
Of course, while living at home can help millennials cut down on costs, according to a new study from Nerd Wallet, it can also have a devastating impact on the retirement savings potential of their overly accommodating parental units…to the tune of a quarter million dollars. Here are some of the key takeaways from Nerd Wallet’s survey:
Depending on the expenses and the length of time that parents are paying them, the analysis finds that supporting adult children could cost parents hundreds of thousands of dollars by retirement.
- Parents could miss out on almost a quarter-million dollars in retirement savings by paying their adult kids’ expenses: According to NerdWallet analysis, a parent’s retirement savings could be $227,000 higher if they chose to save the money that would otherwise go to their child’s living expenses and tuition.
- Parents paying college costs could be missing out on almost $80,000 in retirement savings: More than a quarter of parents of children 18 and older (28%) are paying or have paid for their adult children’s tuition or student loans. The average parent takes out $21,000 in loans for their child’s college education, but the hit to retirement savings is almost quadruple that amount.
- Most adult children are living with their parents for more than a year after they turn 18: Almost 3 in 5 parents with kids 18 and older (59%) have had adult children living with them for more than a year; over 1 in 5 (23%) have had adult children living with them for more than five years. On average, these parents say the longest period of time they have had their adult children living with them is 4.5 years.
- Parents expect their kids to help them financially during retirement: Almost a quarter of parents saving for retirement (23%) expect their children to provide financial support for them after they retire. Millennial parents are most likely to say this (44% vs. 25% of Generation X parents and 5% of baby boomer parents), despite saving more than parents from other generations.
Many parents of children 18 and older are paying or have paid for their adult children’s basic living costs, including groceries (56%), health insurance (40%) and rent or housing outside the family home (21%). Some parents are also covering or have covered their adult child’s cell phone bill (39%) and car insurance (34%). But it’s important for parents — especially those who are behind in saving for retirement — to note that those same dollars could significantly grow their nest eggs over time.
So, why do we do it? First some caveats. One of the three children I bought into the world did a useless degree. But she married a guy wwith a useful one, and now is doing a useful one. The other two are in professional programs. Within the family there is a political warrior (who hates my politics and religion and these posts), an amateur historian (who thinks I am not radical enough) and a musician.
But they knwo what pays the bills. They have met my wife, who made a living as a photographer (and still does) because she produces what the market wants. We consider high art a hobby.
I do it, a bit, because there are times when you need to care for those in your family, at times despite their stupdity. Particularly the weaker, and those who need protection. When there is a clear goal. The younger generations have some sympathy, for they were poorly taught, but not that much, because the lies of the narrative are obvious. You may have to pay lip service to them, but don’t live them.
And heaven help the Gen Z’ers and Millennials who actually believe in the 31 flavors of gender (or were forced to at the age of 7). Male, female, bi, and gay, I can understand. But the life long mental insanity they self-inflicted on themselves with zhe/zher/pansexual/transsapiosexual/or whatever other bupkis has seemingly only translated into mental illness, a 40% suicide attempt rate, and a life of mental hell.
Millions (and I would contend all) leftists in some way or another are suffering horribly living the lives they do.
But there is one simple variable running in the background that explains it all and ties them all together. And it explains why no republican, libertarian, conservative or simply “non-leftists” has to raise a finger or their voice to get their pound of flesh out of the leftists who vote to parasite off of them.
Leftists ignore the Reality Principle.
Leftists ignore reality.And when you choose to ignore reality, living your life and basing your decisions in leftist-utopian la-la land, the real world will come down on you like a 100 megaton bomb and cause such unimaginable pain and agony, even I don’t wish it on the majority of leftists who inflict it upon themselves.
For example, the REALITY of the labor market is that people demand things they want. And if you were to make a list of everybody’s Christmas wishlist it is going to be populated with electronic gadgets, cell phones, computers, laptops, vehicles, clothes, games, drones, and a panoply of other goodies. Consider more boring “necessities” your old man wants and you add tools, gas, insurance, home repairs, auto repairs, lawnmowers, and a whole bunch of other stuff. But if you were to list the trades, professions, and skills that go into making and providing these things to the market, you will find NONE of them require people with “Women’s Studies Skills.” Or “Critical Thinking Skills.” Or “Literature and Poetry” skills. Or “Communications Skills.” They need engineers, accountants, actuaries, tradesmen, metal smithers, and a whole host of other people who actually provide VALUE to the rest of society.
But this harsh reality of having to work for a living, providing value to others, working a job you don’t necessarily like, never dawns on the majority of American high school graduates. It also is antithetical to leftist thought. And so what do 67% of them do?
They major in the liberal arts.
They follow their heart because the money will follow.
They’re going to major in something (because at the wise wise age of 18) they’re going to “change the world.”Now i don’t have to explain to you what happens a short 4-8 years (depending on if they’re dumb enough to get advanced degrees in these fields). For while they glibly and arrogantly lectured your chemical-engineering-majoring-ass about how you were polluting the environment, and you weren’t helping society, and how great they were “raising awareness” about the 3 out of every 2 women being raped on campus,
after graduation
after all the graduation parties
after all the pomp and circumstance was over
and after their parents and relatives are done ..the rest of the remaining 55 years of their lives started. And ALL of those 55 years WILL entail a hell of poverty, scraping by, begging for grant money, and vainly trying to validate their value to society as a single mom in East St. Paul earning below $15 on Facebook.
The US advanced education system is a bit of a scam. Avoid it. You can get your degrees more rapidly and with less expense paying the full rate in Austallaisa or the UK. Or Singapore. But… we will not care about you. We consider you a profit centre. And if you do not achieve, we will fail you.
Ww don’t worry about how much that makes you cry. We are more worried about staying in the top 140 universities, worldwide.
If you want to be comfortable, go tyou the lower ranked, less rigourous, universities in the USA outside of the top 20. Enjoy paying off those loans. Enjoy the lack of utility in your credentials [2].
It is far better, young man, go get a trade. It is far better, young woman, to work retail, hit the gym, marry a tradesman and raise his kids.
Only the eilte can afford to waste their youth, for they have trust funds. The rest of you could buy the millenial falcon with the payments you will make on that student loan.
- Interestingly, when I try to archive such, the archive sites are filtered out in Air New Zealand Lounges.
2 .If you have majored in dance or physical education, you can make more money with a crossfit level 1 certificate than you will make in most dance companies, and much more than graduate school.