Here's Scientific Proof That Life Is Way More Expensive For Millennials
According to a new study released Thursday by the team behind Job Application Center, most Millennials feel poor because they are -- at least compared to previous generations.
The generations we're talking about are the Greatest Generation (born 1901–1945), Baby Boomers (born 1946–1964), Generation X (born 1965–1985) and Millennials (born 1978–1990). While the exact dates of these generations remain hotly debated (like what the hell are '91 babies then?), for research purposes, they stuck to those precise windows.
After crunching the numbers, analysts found Millennials are more likely to get married later in life than their Greatest Generation counterparts, which comes as no surprise.
I mean, can you imagine getting married at 23, dudes, or 20, ladies? Uh, no, didn't think so.
On average, Millennial men get married around 28, while women say their "I dos" when they're 26, which still sounds pretty young but not child-bride young.
What is alarming, however, is the rate at which everyday expenses have skyrocketed.
For example, let's say you did want to get married today. It'd cost you an average of $28,000 compared to the average of $7,500 for a wedding in 1950.
That's an increase of 273 percent. I should also note that all of these dollar values have been adjusted for inflation to represent 2015 dollars. Yikes.
And as anyone who's applied for college knows, getting an education nowadays is not cheap. Back in the day, one year of college at a public four-year institution cost roughly $1,500.
That's a bargain compared to 2006's average of $5,300.
On top of drowning in student loans, simply putting together a decent meal is going to cost you more.
A loaf of bread costs ten times as much as it used to in the "good old days" of the '50s. Even Generation X peeps paid 50 percent less than we are now.
If you're a twenty-something looking to buy a home someday, prepare to get really depressed. The average price of a home in 2010 was $284,000.
That doesn't sound so bad until you compare it to the average price of a 1930s home; those puppies went for $3,845.
While nobody's saying we should all teleport back to the '50s (civil rights weren't really a thing back then), these findings are an eye-opening reminder of how much times have changed dollar-wise.
Moral of the story: If you're on the wrong side of 25 and feeling bad about living in your parents' basement, don't. They had it easier than you did and now there's definitive proof.
Did you hear that mom? I'm staying on my bunk bed forever! JK, I'm living the high life in a ramshackle bungalow with two roommates.
Citations: Millennial Math (Job Application Center)
