As we know, millennials have surpassed baby boomers as the largest demographic age group in the United States. Yet, many people in this massive and influential group are having a complicated time with their careers and lifestyles.
According to Richie Bernardo, writing for WalletHub:
“Loved by marketers, vilified by media, millennials are at once the most popular and unpopular generation alive. They’re the largest, too, giving them an outsized influence on American culture and consumerism. Today, these late-teens-to-early-30-somethings who are often depicted through negative stereotypes — entitled, parentally dependent, deludedly invincible — are responsible for 21 percent of all consumer discretionary spending in the U.S.”
“Despite their trillion-dollar purchasing power and higher educational attainment, millennials are economically worse off than their parents. Why? The financial crisis remains a big part of the reason. Millennials have come of age and entered the workforce in the shadow of the Great Recession, significantly reducing their job prospects and earning potential for decades to come. By one estimate, millennials today earn 20 percent less than Baby Boomers did at the same age.”
Where are the best and worst places for millennials to live? “WalletHub’s data team compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia to determine where this generational cluster has thrived and withered. We examined each state and the District across 24 key metrics, ranging from share of millennials to millennial unemployment rate to millennial voter-turnout rate.”
Here are two informative charts from WalletHub.
Best Overall Locales for Millennials
Best and Worst Locales by Attribute for Millennials
I am surprised that New York is not in one of the highest housing cost for millennials. It’s interesting to see that the difference in total score between North Dakota and Minneapolis is 9.77 but the rest of them are mere 1-2 point differences. Also what caught my eye was that even though California is listed as one with highest unemployment, it is also listed as one of the lowest % depression and highest % of millennials – it will be interesting to know see that the unemployment has no correlation with depression.
Agree. I wonder if they mention anything about state taxes? NYS tax is 8,82%. North Dakota is 5 percent and the the taxes in minneopolis is 7.78 %. The tax rate is California is 6%
I would also wonder how these numbers are curated. The results of these seem very skewed to me and seem to potentially be very industry specific. I would venture to guess that an area closer to a large city would breed more success purely due to larger vocational opportunities.
It am curious to know which industries and types of jobs are fulfilling the employment statistics, and how many companies are employing these people. The lowest employments rates are in the mid-West to Great Plains area which have less crowded urban areas. Is this similar to when in the mid 20th century areas like Detroit and the auto industry provided many people with jobs, and when things changed more people were affected.
I definitely agree with the data provided in this post. For years 18-30 year olds have been leaving New York for states that have a lower cost of living, affordable housing and lower taxes. How will New York and Long Island handle their aging population and try to attract long residence in future?