Decades ago, it was believed that if you owned a home, a car and had a steady job then you had attained the American Dream. Nowadays, most people think that this is unachievable in an economy that is leaving people without jobs and homes.
According to a new CNNMoney poll, 59 percent of American adults say the American Dream is impossible to obtain. Specifically, nearly two-thirds (63 percent) of young adults aged 18 to 34, a demographic that has taken a severe beating since the financial crisis, say the American Dream no longer exists.
Financial experts say that it’s quite understandable for respondents to have these feelings: most Americans have more wealth than their parents – perhaps because there are two income earners in the household – but the national savings rate is very low, overall unemployment is high, college costs are soaring and debt levels that individuals are taking on are astronomical.
The findings were similar to a Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment index that saw it fall to 81.9 in May from 84.1 in April. “The main concern expressed by consumers involved dismal prospects for wage growth, which for nearly half of all households meant anticipated declines in inflation-adjusted incomes and living standards during the year ahead,” Reuters survey director Richard Curtin said in a statement.
In addition, new data cited by the Wall Street Journal indicates that about half of Americans cannot afford their homes. A survey conducted by Hart Research Associates discovered that 52 percent of Americans have had to make at least one significant sacrifice within the past three years in order to pay the rent or make a mortgage payment.
Some of the sacrifices consist of cutting back on healthcare costs, taking on credit card debt, attaining a second job, moving to a bad neighborhood or refraining from saving for retirement.
Although owning home once was viewed as a terrific long-term investment, 43 percent of the study participants noted that owning a home isn’t “an excellent long-term investment and one of the best ways for people to build wealth and assets.” Also, more than half noted that acquiring a home has become less appealing over time.
CNBC concluded that the survey “found that while the public may believe the housing crisis is improving, many respondents do not feel personal relief with their monthly housing costs: Seven in 10 believe the U.S. housing market is still in the middle of the crisis or that the worst is yet to come.”
If the housing market wasn’t bad enough, the number of Americans filing new unemployment benefit claims rose last week, according to the United States Department of Labor. Initial claims for state jobless benefits jumped 8,000 to 312,000 for the week ending May 31.
The CNNMoney telephone survey was conducted with 1,003 adult Americans between May 29 and Jun. 1. It contains a margin of error of +/- three percentage points.