8 Numbers that Define the Millennial Generation

There are many attributes, values, or qualities that we could use to describe Millennials. But here we will review the qualitative data, and look at eight numbers that characterize and even define the Millennial generation:

39%

This first number that defines Millennials, 39% is the percent of the generation that has completed a bachelor’s degree or higher, compared to only 29% of Gen X’ers at their same age. Many more Millennials have completed a two-year associate’s or trade school degree. Of course, all of this further education has come at a cost, as the next number will show.

$500.5 billion

This staggering number is the total amount in dollars of outstanding school loans of 25 to 34 year olds in the USA as of September 2020, according to the Federal Student Loan Portfolio. Millennials came of age during a time when going to college was a given, yet they entered their careers during the Great Recession of 2008-2010, and have been largely unsuccessful in paying off massive student loan debts.

28 and 30

These two numbers are the average ages that women (28) and men (30) are getting married in the United States as of 2019. So what does that mean for Millennials? They are delaying marriage longer than previous generations, choosing to either remain single or live with their partner yet remain unmarried.

38%

This is the percentage of Millennial homebuyers in 2019, a number that could potentially increase in 2020. There are two stories about this number: on the positive side, this percentage has increased from 32% in 2015 to 38% in 2019. However, overall, Millennials owned only 4% of the housing market in 2019, a number that has dropped from 7.5% in 2016. So what our original number 38% of Millennial homebuyers in 2019 shows is that the Millennials currently purchasing homes are moving from their starter homes to a second or even third home, and that many Millennials have always only rented or may still live with family members.

$5000

According to Business Insider, the typical Millennial has less than $5000 in savings at any given time. Likely, they are prioritizing paying off debt from both student loans and credit cards over creating savings goals such as toward a mortgage down payment or a wedding (as our two previous numbers indicate). What is even more startling is that 14% of Millennials report having no money in savings at all, according to one real estate survey.

 14% and 17%

While the true numbers are hard to nail down, according to Psychology Today, up to 14% of Millennials suffer from anxiety, and up to 17% of Millennials are depressed. According to a survey from BlueCross BlueShield, depression is the number one health problem facing Millennials, even when put up against a variety of physical conditions such as diabetes or hypertension.