Young individuals, especially those right around the age of college students, think that they'll earn less money than their parents however can be just as happy if not more so with their lives. The Associated Press found that individuals aged 18 to 24 expected greater amounts of debt and higher costs in their life than their parents, but were still generally optimistic about their futures. Article resource - Students optimistic about the future, despite expecting less cash by MoneyBlogNewz.

Younger generation expects less money, more happiness

Many in the younger generation are determined to have happy lives, states MSNBC. This is regardless of the fact they do not expect to get very much money from work in the future. The Associated Press and Viacom did a poll of 18 to 24 year olds. Forty percent of them said that goals for instance purchasing a home and raising a family are likely to be harder than it was in the past. Then there was the 25 percent that believed they would have it better than their parents in life. About 90 percent of the survey subjects believed they would eventually find a career they find fulfilling.

Problems with money start with student debt

The increased costs making a harder living is what individuals in the AP survey said would happen. Among costs steadily increasing for individuals in that age group is student debt. Bankruptcy cannot get student loans discharged which students graduate, on average, with $24,000 in. That means $276 per month payments with a rate of interest of 6.8 percent, states the New York Times. The Department of Education reports that 65.6 percent of all undergraduates from 2007 to 2008 received some kind of financial aid, and 38.5 percent of all undergraduates had student loans of some sort. The Department of Education found that 30 percent of all undergraduates took out subsidized Stafford loans and 22 percent borrowed non-subsidized Stafford loans.

The right investment

The bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the average earnings with a college degree are $53,000 a year. Hardly everyone gets it right away though. The likelihood that somebody will end up in the middle class goes up when someone has a degree, rather than a guarantee of income. People with college degrees also tend to have lower rates of unemployment; Americans with bachelor's degrees had a 4 percent lower rate of unemployment than those with only a high school diploma in 2009. The cost of a degree is increasing though.

Articles cited

MSNBC

msnbc.msn.com/id/42643248/ns/business-your_retirement/

Department of Education

nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=31

New York Times

economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/04/15/how-worrisome-is-student-debt/?partner=rss&emc=rss

Bureau of Labor Statistics

bls.gov/emp/ep_chart_001.htm