So all of you in you 30s
Do you save more then?
CNN Money: Making less than dad did
Take note, the less you spend, the quicker the economy goes into recession and then the harder it will be for the Baby Boomers to retire, but retire they will have to as companies slowly push them out. This will enable our generation to get better raises and financial benefits. Down with the Baby Boomers, their time is past!
CNN Money: Making less than dad did
Take note, the less you spend, the quicker the economy goes into recession and then the harder it will be for the Baby Boomers to retire, but retire they will have to as companies slowly push them out. This will enable our generation to get better raises and financial benefits. Down with the Baby Boomers, their time is past!
Comments
Have at it boys and girls.
Suggestion - Avoid broad generalizations. No segement of our society is perfectly homogeneous.
No real side-effects other than my house's value never ceases to increase and my shit now smells like strawberry quick.
As a homogenized boomer, I have the following statement:
It's true. Beginning with the summer of love, all of us boomers enthusiastically pursued sex, drugs, and rock and roll to the exclusion of all other activities, all the while being supported by others. Why should we work when everything we could possibly want was just given to us? It is unfortunate that our "counter-culture" was solely responsible for the spread of sexually transmitted diseases, popularization of the use of illegal drugs, and loud repetitive music, but what the heck.
Now that we are older, we all have either inherited or managed to tap into the great wealth that our parents accumulated thru a lifetime of hard work and frugal living and we are now squandering it on items of conspicuous consumption such as luxury cars and mansions. Hey we are the "me" generation so screw you! We are going to hold on to the best jobs for as long as we can, use up all of the fossil fuels driving our SUV's, destroy the economy pursuing immediate gratification, and we probably won't be around to see the worst of global warming – so party on fellow boomers!
Did I miss anything?
I ran a study a few years ago for a very, very large organization with millions of employees (guess what that could be). I had a good laugh reading emails that said "I don't think this applies to me, I'm only 45, why would I be planning my retirement?"
If this is the case, it looks like many boomers will need to sell their home in order to fund retirement as their savings won't be enough to make payments on the mortgage.
Good point. I would guess that at least half of my boomer acquaintances are in the very situation you describe, or worse. Some because of divorce, child support payments, failed business ventures, illness, having to care for aging parents, etc. The older you get, the more opportunity for things to go wrong. The others are living from paycheck to paycheck because of short sightedness and a rampant case of what I call the "immediate gratification syndrome" or "I got to have it right now" mentality. Some of these latter type clowns actually earn over twice the amount that I do. So it's not how much you earn, it's what you do with what you do earn IMHO.
The bright side for you is - if the boomers have to sell their homes to fund retirement won't that eventually result in a glut on the market? Won't that drive prices down? Save your money! Be ready to take advantage of the situation!
As pointed out by Lereah, senior vice president and chief economist of the National Association of Realtors, "over 80 percent of homeowners in America depend more on the value of their home for retirement than stocks and other savings."
No comment on whether this is a wise choice for retirement funding. At least NAR thinks it is a good idea, and if you can't trust a gang of Realtors, who can you trust for sound retirement planning advice?
My suspicion is that alot of retiring boomers are going to be leaving high priced costal markets and heading for cheaper inland digs once they are no longer able to find full employment. As usual the older boomers at the head of the curve will do quite well while the younger ones are left fighting for scraps.
The majority of folks that I know that retired recently have done just that.
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If they don't, I'll take care of it (just joking)
I'm certainly worse off than my father was when he was my age, inflation adjusted, though he had a family to provide for and I don't, so things might even out. He also was able to buy a house in his early thirties while he was the sole breadwinner of our family in the early 1970's, I'll be lucky to afford something by the time I'm 50, so it looks like renting is something I have to get used to for now.
Just got notified my rent is going up another $100 per month this year. Wonderful :roll:
Today, the pay grade that my father held in 1968 would pay around $103,500 per year. $103,500 multiplied by 1.3 equals $134,550. I don't think I have to say anything about what $134,550 will buy today, even in Kitsap County.
These days it is said that purchase price / annual salary ratio of 3 to 4 is normal while in Seattle median home price / median family income ratio is around 6 or more the last time I checked. Obviously, affordability has really changed since the late 60's / early 70's and I certainly have not kept pace with my father's financial success (my fault ?) as I do not make $103,500 per year. We're all feeling the crunch in some way, not just the 30-somethings.
Also, the real point of this thread was to get an idea of the savings rate of the 30s gen. Since we are making less, the solution is to save more, not to waste time whining about something like whose fault it is or which generation had it better, that is something more like the Baby Boomers would do, which is I guess why you interjected! Thanks for the whine, should go well with my cheese!
What's with the attitude? You must be really bitter about something.
Are you one of these?
...The stereotypical definition given to Generation X by the media is one that leads society to believe that it is made up of frustrated, cynical, hopeless and unmotivated slackers who have McJobs, still live at home, wear grunge clothing and listen to alternative music while hanging out in coffee shops all day because they have nothing better to do...
ALL Gen-Xers must be like the above, right? Perhaps that explains why you don't earn as much as dear old dad.
You're right. The title of your original post does clearly indicate that it was meant for thirty-somethings. Sorry for intruding.
Good luck with inducing a recession by increased saving. Oh wait! Gen-Xers don't earn very much with their McJobs do they, so the collective impact of your efforts will be undetectable. But cheer up! You probably still live at home so you should still try and save something.
Bye.
I am 30 and make slightly above the median income. But damn, after rent, student loans, and commuting. There really is not a whole lot left over. I do not live paycheck to paycheck and do not have a lot of credit card debt.
On a side note: I have definitely kept up with my father and make about the same amount as he does. Just got a 44% RAISE at work (66% increase over the past year & 91% over the past 3 years), woo hoo. 6 months ago there were 3 people in my dept and now Im the only one (due to layoffs and people leaving)...Im doing the same exact job and have taken on a moderate amount of increased responsibilities...my manager just likes me and do a great job.
Time to start looking for a new job!!
no comment
No, and it shouldn't be since it's not disposable income. You can't use it to pay bills and pay down debt unless you make a withdrawl and turn it into taxable income.
My current job limits me to putting away about 20% of pretax income, which is of course what I do. None of it counts as savings though, and I can't spend it. A friend of mine got a new job that allows up to 50% (???) of pretax to be put away. :shock: Of course, he's so deep in debt that even 5% is probably out of the question.
It is disposable income, I elect what portion of my income goes to that account. I can increase or decrease the amount at any time and by the next pay period i will have more or less disposable income. The employer contribution on the other hand should not be counted as savings.
Or am I incorrect in this assumption?
You know, when I get more time I'll have to look that up. My understanding was that if the income wasn't taxable it didn't count as savings, since it is never actually part of disposable income.
Good luck with that. Sorry to be an ass, but I really think you should sell and buy back in during the dip.
Remember, you can always renegotiate your interest rate but not the purchase price of your condo.