This is why millenials can't have nice things (or save any money)
Jun 27, 2017 12:21:49 #
slatten49
Loc: Lake Whitney, Texas
June 27, 2017 8:26 a.m. ET
From GoodStockInvest
By Quentin Fottrell; Personal Finance Editor
Minor expenses can cause major financial problems.
“Millennials are falling victim to common financial vices, such as spending money in coffee shops,” according to a new study by personal-finance site Bankrate.com. The average millennial dines at a restaurant or buys take-out food five times per week and nearly 30% of this age group say they buy coffee at least three times per week. More than half of millennials (54%) eat out at least three times a week, compared to roughly one-third of Generation X-ers and baby boomers.
“Often, it’s the minor, habitual expenses, such as take-out and alcohol, that wreak havoc on your budget,” Sarah Berger, a financial analyst at Bankrate, said. “Preparing meals at home and brewing your own coffee can add up to big savings.” Some 59% of all age groups say they don’t purchase any brewed coffee or tea in a typical week and 40% say they buy take-out or dine at a restaurant no more than once per week. But that doesn’t mean they’re all cooking at home.
In fact, the number of phone and internet orders for restaurants surged 18% last year to 1.9 billion, according to data released last March by Port Washington, N.Y.-based research firm NPD Group. Some 50% of digital orders come at dinner time, while 35% includes parties with kids. People younger than 35 and those with higher household incomes are among above-average users of digital ordering with apps like Seamless and Grubhub.
Restaurant food is still the No. 1 thing that Americans spend their money on, according to the Principal Financial Group’s annual Financial Well Being Index, which was released last December. They spent 24% of their budgets on restaurant food, up from 22% two years earlier, versus 20% on groceries and 18% on entertainment. All this eating out adds up. For lunch alone, Americans spend an average of $53 a week, or $2,746 a year.
Eating prepared food can also be bad for your health. People have less control over what goes into their meals when they order in. Americans get most of their daily sodium — more than 75% — from processed food and restaurant food, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Such foods are high in sodium, so it’s difficult to reduce your daily sodium intake if you don’t cook your own food, or if you eat pre-made sauces or meals.
Millennials also have bigger problems. They shoulder more student loan debt than any other generation and face house prices that are far higher than their parents did at their age in a post-recession environment of stagnant wages. Student loan debt has reached $1.3 trillion as the cost of college has soared. And spending no more than 30% of their income on rent or a mortgage, which was deemed a golden rule for decades, is now almost impossible for many young Americans.
While one-quarter of millennials and Generation X-ers lack any emergency savings, according to a separate Bankrate survey released last week, younger millennials (those aged 18 to 26) appear to have learned from the lessons of their older siblings: They have the highest propensity to have enough to cover 3 to 5 months of expenses (31%). Generation X is most likely to have some savings, but not enough to cover three months’ expenses (28%).
From GoodStockInvest
By Quentin Fottrell; Personal Finance Editor
Minor expenses can cause major financial problems.
“Millennials are falling victim to common financial vices, such as spending money in coffee shops,” according to a new study by personal-finance site Bankrate.com. The average millennial dines at a restaurant or buys take-out food five times per week and nearly 30% of this age group say they buy coffee at least three times per week. More than half of millennials (54%) eat out at least three times a week, compared to roughly one-third of Generation X-ers and baby boomers.
“Often, it’s the minor, habitual expenses, such as take-out and alcohol, that wreak havoc on your budget,” Sarah Berger, a financial analyst at Bankrate, said. “Preparing meals at home and brewing your own coffee can add up to big savings.” Some 59% of all age groups say they don’t purchase any brewed coffee or tea in a typical week and 40% say they buy take-out or dine at a restaurant no more than once per week. But that doesn’t mean they’re all cooking at home.
In fact, the number of phone and internet orders for restaurants surged 18% last year to 1.9 billion, according to data released last March by Port Washington, N.Y.-based research firm NPD Group. Some 50% of digital orders come at dinner time, while 35% includes parties with kids. People younger than 35 and those with higher household incomes are among above-average users of digital ordering with apps like Seamless and Grubhub.
Restaurant food is still the No. 1 thing that Americans spend their money on, according to the Principal Financial Group’s annual Financial Well Being Index, which was released last December. They spent 24% of their budgets on restaurant food, up from 22% two years earlier, versus 20% on groceries and 18% on entertainment. All this eating out adds up. For lunch alone, Americans spend an average of $53 a week, or $2,746 a year.
Eating prepared food can also be bad for your health. People have less control over what goes into their meals when they order in. Americans get most of their daily sodium — more than 75% — from processed food and restaurant food, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Such foods are high in sodium, so it’s difficult to reduce your daily sodium intake if you don’t cook your own food, or if you eat pre-made sauces or meals.
Millennials also have bigger problems. They shoulder more student loan debt than any other generation and face house prices that are far higher than their parents did at their age in a post-recession environment of stagnant wages. Student loan debt has reached $1.3 trillion as the cost of college has soared. And spending no more than 30% of their income on rent or a mortgage, which was deemed a golden rule for decades, is now almost impossible for many young Americans.
While one-quarter of millennials and Generation X-ers lack any emergency savings, according to a separate Bankrate survey released last week, younger millennials (those aged 18 to 26) appear to have learned from the lessons of their older siblings: They have the highest propensity to have enough to cover 3 to 5 months of expenses (31%). Generation X is most likely to have some savings, but not enough to cover three months’ expenses (28%).
Jun 27, 2017 13:02:39 #
There are other reasons not to cook.
A man and his wife were working in the garden one day and the man looks over at his wife and says " You know, your ass is getting bigger. Hell, I think it's wider than the grill!" He proceeded to get a measuring tape and measured the grill. Then he measured his wife's ass. "Yep, I was right! Your ass is a full 2 inches wider than the grill!" That night, the husband was feeling a little frisky and turned to his wife, but she just brushed him off. "What's wrong?" he asked. She replied, "Do you really think I'm gonna fire up this big-ass grill for one little weenie?"
A man and his wife were working in the garden one day and the man looks over at his wife and says " You know, your ass is getting bigger. Hell, I think it's wider than the grill!" He proceeded to get a measuring tape and measured the grill. Then he measured his wife's ass. "Yep, I was right! Your ass is a full 2 inches wider than the grill!" That night, the husband was feeling a little frisky and turned to his wife, but she just brushed him off. "What's wrong?" he asked. She replied, "Do you really think I'm gonna fire up this big-ass grill for one little weenie?"
Jun 27, 2017 13:05:02 #
slatten49
Loc: Lake Whitney, Texas
moldyoldy wrote:
There are other reasons not to cook. br br A man ... (show quote)
Not exactly where I thought this article would lead, but.... Jun 27, 2017 15:47:46 #
most people these days are spoiled rotten, they haven't a clue what hard times really are.
They may learn some day
They may learn some day
Jun 27, 2017 19:32:45 #
In the past two teens could work a McJob and afford to rent an apartment. Today it is difficult with a real job. Wages are stagnant for all but the top tier.
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