Young adults in the U.S. are experiencing a very different trajectory than their parents, with more of them hitting key milestones later in life and also taking on more debt, according to a new report from the Pew Research Center.

A majority of young adults say they remain financially dependent on their parents to some extent, such as receiving help paying for everything from rent to their mobile phone bills. Only about 45% of 18- to 34-year-olds described themselves as completely financially independent from their parents, the study found.

Not surprisingly, the younger members of the group, those 18 to 24, are the most likely to rely on their folks for financial support, with more than half relying on their parents to help take care of basic household expenses. But a significant share of 30- to 34-year-olds also need assistance, with almost 1 in 5 saying their parents provide aid for their household bills.

More broadly, the survey offers a portrait of a generation that’s struggling with debt in a way that their parents did not, with more of them shouldering student loans and, for those who own a home, larger mortgages than their parents had at their age. But the analysis also showed that young adults expressed optimism about their futures, with 3 in 4 who are currently financially dependent on their parents saying they believe they’ll eventually reach independence.

    • shortwavesurfer
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      10 months ago

      How would we trade resources through cows or would you just shoot people and take theirs? Because money represents an easy way of trading resources back and forth. And it’s a standard because cows don’t weigh the same, etc.

      • PopOfAfrica@lemmy.world
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        10 months ago

        See, we already rely on the government to establish our currency and distribute it to begin with. It really just seems like a middle man with extra steps.

        Capitalists really seem to hate the idea of governmental control Over commodities, but that’s literally all a government does even with money at the helm. The very money they produce.