Jeremy Horpedahl: Are Millennials and Gen Z Actually Worse Off Than Their Parents?

The Reason Interview With Nick Gillespie

You've probably heard some variation of the notion that Millennials and Gen Z are going to be the first generations of Americans to have lower standards of living than their parents. It's too expensive to go to college, to buy a house, to have kids—you name it, goes this line of thinking. Today's guest has good news: Younger Americans are actually doing better than Gen X was at the same stage, and they are in the same ballpark as Baby Boomers when you adjust for inflation and population.

"Millennials and Gen Z have dramatically more wealth than Gen X had at the same age, and it's growing fast!," writes Jeremy Horpedahl, a libertarian economist trained at George Mason University who teaches at the University of Central Arkansas. His work, which draws on the Census, Bureau of Labor Statistics, and other non-controversial sources, shows that young Americans are doing well and that economic mobility is the rule rather than the exception.

Reason's Nick Gillespie talks with Horpedahl about why politicians and media sources get basic economics wrong, why it's vital to always adjust for inflation and population growth, and how growing up in the Dakotas gives him a different, more optimistic perspective on things than many in the academy. Horpedahl also analyzes the economic plans of former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris. His answers are provocative, to say the least, just like his research.

0:00- Introduction

2:46- Adjusted for inflation' & 'per capita'

6:02- Are Millennials & Gen Z really doomed?

12:57- American homeownership rates

15:00- Delayed 'adulting'

18:59- Housing spending trends

22:08- Why is housing so expensive?

29:32- Ad: Lumen

31:10- Why are Millennials so eager to embrace doomerism?

35:20- How economic growth impact living standards

37:09- U.S. economic freedom, growth & living standards compared to Europe

41:40- Measures of mobility

47:50- How post-COVID inflation skewed our perceptions

53:28- Is inflation our new normal?

55:19- Should we be hoping for divided government?

58:00- Attitudes toward immigration in Arkansas

1:01:19- Benefits of living in 'flyover country'

1:05:04- George Mason economics

1:06:44- Do libertarians blame government too much?

1:10:05- Is there room for optimism for the future?

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