You know how The Talk goes: Budget your expenses, don’t spend wildly, save for the future. It’s advice that applies to anybody, but it’s hard to get young people to take it seriously.
Or maybe not. A recent survey done for T. Rowe Price, the Baltimore-based global investment firm, indicated that millennials – people from ages 18 to 33 – are doing as well as, if not better than, baby boomers – ages 51 to 69 – in several key areas regarding saving, spending and investing for retirement. The study was based on online interviews with 4,308 workers and retirees; most are contributing or did contribute to a 401(k) savings plan.
The survey showed that more millennials than baby boomers track expenses carefully, 75 percent vs. 64 percent, and live according to a budget, 67 percent vs. 55 percent.
It revealed that more millennials than boomers – 40 percent compared with 21 percent – have increased their retirement savings within the past year. And despite being decades from retirement, millennials are saving almost as much of their salary as boomers.
These numbers should be a relief to the country. The millennials “are exhibiting financial discipline in managing their spending and are defying stereotypes that this generation is prone to spendthrift, short-sighted thinking,” said Anne Coveney of T. Rowe Price.
It’s a good thing more young people are taking their finances seriously, since it’s unlikely that their future will come with a traditional pension or the level of Social Security benefits received by their parents. And who knows? This responsible generation may be just the antidote for the nation’s $18 trillion debt.
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