Financial Peace for the Next Generation

Imagine your first adult act -- before you buy a house, get married or have kids -- is filing for bankruptcy protection. In 2001, that happened to more than 100,000 people under age 25, according to Elizabeth Warren, a Harvard law professor who conducts an annual study of bankruptcy filers. Born after 1978, generation y members in America are more than 57 million strong. The y generation is the largest consumer group in the history of the U.S. Other names for gen y include Echo Boomers and the Millennium Generation. Because gen y is piling up debt at a faster pace and an earlier age have left some to also add the name generation broke.

It is no accident nor to be unexpected that your generation is being targeted by anyone who can open a storefront or put up a website. They want your money. They’ll take your money even if you haven’t earned it yet (e.g. credit.) This is and will continue to be a critical issue that will require you to be disciplined and diligent from now until your life has ended. Financial mismanagement can lead to enormous personal stress, marital stress, and damaged reputations.