Study Reveals The Greediest Generation
The answer probably won't shock you.
Cavan-Images | Shutterstock No one wants to be labeled as greedy, but aren’t we all a bit curious to know who among us is most stingy with their money?
Wealth management firm Charles Schwab set out to determine which generation is the greediest. The results of their study were telling.
The study revealed that baby boomers are the greediest generation.
The firm surveyed over 1,000 Americans with more than $1 million in assets. According to a press release, “Wealthy millennials and Gen Xers are more than twice as likely to say they want to share their wealth with the next generation during their lives compared to millionaire boomers, who are more likely to say they want to enjoy their money themselves."
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When asked if they wanted future generations to have access to and enjoy their wealth during their lifetime, only 21% of boomers said they were interested in doing so, compared to 44% of Gen Xers and 53% of millennials.
“Younger wealthy Americans expect to distribute over twice as much of their wealth while alive compared to wealthy boomers,” the press release continued. Millennials and Gen Xers both came in at 97% for wanting to do so, while only 56% of boomers said the same.
Furthermore, after their lifetimes, boomers plan to leave less money for future generations than their younger counterparts.
The study found that attitudes about money are changing among younger generations.
Andrew D’Anna, the Managing Director of Retail Client Experience at Charles Schwab, said, “According to our survey, younger Americans could be poised to reshape legacy planning and the future of how wealth is passed to the next generation.”
Millennials and Gen Xers indeed appeared to be more generous with their money than their older counterparts. The survey did not include data about Gen Z participants. Naturally, Gen Zers have less money since they’ve been working for a shorter amount of time.
The U.S. Census Bureau estimated that the average Gen Zer’s net worth is $69,110. While this is modest compared to older generations, NielsonIQ predicted that Gen Z’s spending potential will reach $12 trillion by 2030. In other words, Gen Z has the potential to become quite wealthy.
If younger generations continue the trend of becoming more and more generous with their money, Gen Z could have a huge impact on the country, and the world’s, economic future.
Why are boomers so greedy?
There are multiple factors to consider when thinking about why boomers are so quick to hold on to their money.
According to CNN’s Matt Egan, Social Security payments could be partially to blame. In January of 2023, Social Security payments increased by 8.7% to keep up with inflation, which added about $146 to recipients’ monthly benefits.
Egan also pointed out that boomers are not dealing with the same high cost of living that younger generations are. They bought houses for exponentially cheaper and don’t have other things like student loans to consider.
While this may not explain the psychological reason behind why boomers are more stingy with their money, it does explain how they ended up with more in the first place. Additionally, the good financial conditions they’ve gotten used to could lead them to a false belief that younger generations aren’t struggling when they certainly are.
Whatever the reasoning is behind boomers’ greediness, it’s important to note that this is not a blanket statement that applies to every boomer. Plenty are very generous — but as a whole, they are less so than younger generations.
Mary-Faith Martinez is a writer with a bachelor’s degree in English and Journalism who covers news, psychology, lifestyle, and human interest topics.