Fellow millennials, how are u guys doing economically nowadays?

[arcanoside]

@be4christ My parents both came from large families and grew up very poor. Both were the first college graduates ever in their respective families. While they wouldn't be considered rich, they were able to improve financially - they would again be the most successful out of all their siblings. They didn't work abroad like others, but were good enough to have good careers in the Philippines. They were able to buy large properties and several houses and make our lives comfortable. I would say that they are examples of how one can lift themselves up from the lower class through work, skill, and luck.

Right now, I think I'm doing fine. I didn't have any business to take over, I didn't get any handouts when I started my career, but my wife and I have several properties of our own and several income streams. My biggest source of income is still my job, but I have the flexibility to look for any other job I want without worrying too much financially. I don't think I would have been successful if I didn't have the financial security coming from my parents: I was able to go through good schools, I was able to travel a lot as a kid, my parents also helped me grow a very strong professional network (a lot of people I knew when younger came from successful families that my parents knew), and I had the flexibility of choosing a career I wanted without having to think about tuition or supporting someone else.

These times have been rough, and having gone through 911 and several financial crises in my adult life, I don't think I would have gone through the "rags to riches" experience quite so easily as my parents did ~40+ years ago. I would like to think that I could still have lifted myself up from poverty, but I'm always thankful that I didn't have to because my parents already did that for me.

 

[hunterjack]

@be4christ My salary is going towards planting trees and building a farm. I'm doing this so in a few years hopefully we'll be stable food-wise and my child will be able to enjoy fresh air. I'm not so optimistic on how the quality of air will be a few decades from now.

 

[1faithme]

@be4christ M30 here, I think my parent's lives were harder. My father died when I was very young so raised by a single mother.

Stressed/pressured tayo because of social media, but it also opened our eyes on how to manage our finances.

Sa generation kasi nila okay lang walang savings,normal lang na may utang, mag anak ng 5 na hindi pa alam kung afford ba nila. So hindi din sila pressured or worried kasi nga yun yung normal sa peers nila.

In the topic of inflation naman and turbulent global concerns, I think every generation naman meron nun. I think in my parent's case they were already working when martial law happened and ilang global recession na din yung na experience nila.

One of the reasons that made me say na they struggled more is when i got my first job. My mother was working for almost 30 years na that time and although maliit din salary ko nun but mas mataas pa yung naging salary ko sa mother ko and I even save a lot of money compared to her because nga maraming utang.

I think bottom line is every generation has their pros and cons din.

 

[bruce_f]

@be4christ What I've seen is it's both harder and easier at the same time for my parents. It was harder cuz they came from humble beginnings, they would tell me of their slap soil days and how they rose from the ground up etc

But at the same time it's also easier for them cuz they were pioneers at their field and didn't face as much competition. Back in the day you can offset differences with hard work, you can stay at a single company and rise from the ranks etc. That's not the case now. First of all, you are already behind if you don't come from the "big 4", some companies won't prioritize you. Secondly even the "big 4" is nothing special nowadays, I don't even bother asking which school they came from cuz even if they say Ateneo, DLSU or UP, there's like a dozen in my team already. Back in the day my parents told me their Masters was the differential advantage but now I see yuppies 3 yrs in their career taking their Masters already. It takes a lot more to stand out and you need to always be on the lookout for opportunities and job hunt cuz if you stay at the same spot you will become underpaid sooner or later.

The other issue is the cost of living is so much higher now. My parents bought a townhouse for 100k back in the 80s, 40 yrs later we sold that ratty old building for 10M. We bought our current house for 9M back in 200, 23 yrs later we see the price of similar houses in the 15-20M range. Everything is so much more expensive now if you're starting with nothing it's hard to establish a foothold.

 

[jostix91]

@be4christ I can relate to @angelhmyun 's comment

30M Same with properties (2, city and province) and insurance (2). My EF is quite thin (6mos) though and savings is thin as well. MP2 just sits at 200k. Credit score is 700 (as per cibi). I am self-employed and being commissioned for my hobbies that I offer as services that earns me (20k a month). I resigned from a well paying job to protect my mental health, and now I am an employee too and have a loose wfh sched earning me just enough (20k a month, too). I don't dream of hustling harder anymore.

I dated somebody who earns 6x my salary and I know I cannot blame her if she thinks I am not yet ready to settle down. But that has become my biggest insecurity now. I don't want to go somewhere I'd get burned out anymore, nor succumb to hustling again. I am ok where I am at now.

I am always questioning my "standards" and always asking if am I just being tolerant of this "laziness"?

 

[emon5]

@be4christ Mid-30s, don't have a house yet. have a few millions in the bank though.