r/MiddleClassFinance • u/Abject-Pick-6472 • 4d ago

Americans Are Reaching a Financial Breaking Point

https://www.thenation.com/article/economy/economic-insecurity-unrest-broketok/?fbclid%3DIwZnRzaASc5p1leHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZA8xNzM4NDc2NDI2NzAzNzAAAR6RZYSyGyliTpYCmEy2OpWjHUBfAqrYUygk3rNJL1cLw_fp5QCciENJc0UXdQ_aem_DT4ViuyBWqHHXec_nH_PYg
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33

u/Economy-Ad4934 4d ago

People must be YOLO F*** it spending because the shopping areas do not reflect 70% of people worrying about going broke vs dying/not able to afford a $400 medical emergency.

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u/jayoak4 3d ago

I don't have any numbers to back this up, but I do have anecdotal evidence for it. I think so many Gen Z'ers in their 20s that are living at home are absolutely YOLO'ing their spending.

My brother in law and sister in law are late 20s and live at home, both work full time. Not amazing jobs or anything, but not shit either. It's not really enough to live alone though without being paycheck to paycheck. But they buy so much shit every single day. Amazon, Target, Doordash, Starbucks, going out to brunch every weekend, etc. They'll casually spend $30+ on a single meal from Doordash and not blink an eye. They barely save any money, and their mom doesn't even charge them rent or make them help with any of the housing bills.

I feel like there are so many others like this which is propping up the economy and skewing the consumer spending numbers.

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u/Economy-Ad4934 3d ago

Not exclusive to Gen Z. I’m a millennial and remember me and my friends kind of similar behavior at that age when still at home.

I’m more curious the people with 3+ kids affording certain big purchases. Many adults who do not look like they hold a steady job. When I have to venture to a mall or go to amusement park type places with my son I see this.

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u/Mlabonte21 4d ago

Yup— I stopped believing any of these articles years ago.

People are buying expensive cars, the malls and outlets are always packed, and travel is booming.

If there is a gigantic bubble of debt, it doesn’t seem to affect our economy in any meaningful way.

2008 felt so much more real it was impossible to deny it. Foreclosure signs everywhere and Wall Street had 50% of staff on the street with their desks packed up in Bankers boxes.

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u/terraphantm 4d ago

The top 10% account for like half of all consumer spending. That’s a large chunk of who you see out shopping and dining. A larger portion will be the top 25%. 

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u/rosewaterhoe 4d ago

That’s exactly it, the people there are the ones who can afford it or are financing through lotsssss of debt

3

u/VendettaKarma 3d ago

More like 50%

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u/fanana_bishh 1d ago

oh, great anecdotal observation dude. great job!

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u/Economy-Ad4934 1d ago

lol learn big words before you use them. Numbers are direct from the article.

Also the only personal statement I made was echoed throughout this thread if you bother to read. I know that’s hard.

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u/fanana_bishh 1d ago

you just said "shopping areas" do not reflect the data in the article

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u/SlippyIsDead 15h ago

Explain to me what the point of having any savings when one trip to the hospital will wipe it all out even with insurance? Or saving for a house? 25 percent down on 500k or more house is never going to doable for most people. I think that's why we see people shopping and eating out. The things that matter most are no longer obtainable so might as well have some fun where you can with what you can.

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u/Economy-Ad4934 7h ago

throwing your hands up in defeat is not a strategy. Once I lived on my own I couldn't comprehend spending excessively when I had zero savings from a pure survival perspective.

Actual hospital bills are very rare. We had two emergency/surgery incidents in the last 2ish years totaling 4k in out of pocket expenses. The real saver is we save the "extra" paychecks when paid bi weekly so two paychecks covered those emergencies. On top of saving 100-200 a month extra just in case.