Adulthood Starts at 26, According to Survey -- AP | May 9, 2003
"The law may imply that you're a grown-up when you're old enough to vote, serve in the military or drink legally. But, most Americans really think adulthood begins at age 26, according to a study from the University of Chicago. The study said most people don't consider a person grown up until they finish school, get a full-time job and start raising a family. Tom W. Smith, who conducted the study, the results are a sign that society has accepted what researchers have called an "extended adolescence."
Even as the Economy collapses, the niche market targeted at 20-somethings survives
New York Times 12/20/08

Marsha Brady, creative director for American Apparel — which in November had a 6 percent increase in sales at stores open at least a year — said the key to its continued success in this economy is its demographic: young, single, urban creative-types accustomed to living on a shoestring.

“They hear about the stock market but stocks are something their parents worry about,” Ms. Brady said. “They don’t own anything. They rent. They’re not really facing foreclosure or falling property values. If anything they’ll just get another roommate or move into a cheaper rental. It’s not utter devastation to their cores.”

If you're in - or near - this age group, these articles are worth reading
about the OPM issues facing college grads and other post-high-school "kids" 18-26:

"Grow Up? Not So Fast" -- Time (Jan.24, 2005):
" Some twixters may want to grow up, but corporations and advertisers have a real stake in keeping them in a tractable, exploitable, pre-adult state—living at home, spending their money on toys."

"Facing Young Workers' High Job Expectations."
"Although Levine also says that today's young adults are long on idealism and altruism, "many of the individuals we see are heavily committed to something we call 'fun.' " He partly faults coddling parents and colleges for doing little to prepare students for the realities of adulthood and for setting the course for what many of the generation's disillusioned are increasingly calling their "quarter-life crisis.'"

"Mom is My Landlord": According to the U.S. Census Bureau, an estimated 4.3 million 25- to 34-year-olds (and 18.6 million 18- to 34-year-olds) living at home, a growing phenomena....

"Hi Folks, I'm Home!"
"Social scientists have blamed this "boomerang" syndrome on a variety of economic factors: a tight job market, low salaries for entry-level jobs, the high cost of rent and large student-loan debts, making it difficult for many to afford independent living soon after graduation."

"Big Threat on Campus: Credit Cards."
"You've discovered the modern reality of student loans: Once you've got them, you're stuck with them."

"Online Gambling on Campus"
"College students are the prize demographic for arresting cable-TV poker competitions and glittery betting websites."

"In Debt, Forever"
"Because of higher tuition, steady or declining grants and state aid, and a greater dependency on loans, the average student's debt has increased by more than 50 percent over the last decade, after accounting for inflation, according to the U.S. Department of Education. And as Congress moves to cut the budget deficit, the cost pressure on college students and those preparing to enter university is about to worsen...."

"Robbing Joe College to Pay Sallie Mae"
"Today, those lucky enough to graduate from college end up with an average of $17,600 in loans, a burden that shapes decisions like buying a house or having children. But most young people are not so lucky - half of those who start college do not graduate at all, in part because of the financial burden of staying in school".

"Aid Lets Smaller Colleges ask, Why Pay for Ivy League Retail?"
"The result is a college pricing system that can feel as varied, or even mysterious, as buying airplane seats.... Merit aid is essentially a deep discount.... "

Here Comes the ... Bills
" Nuptial sticker shock is a sobering fact for brides and grooms as wedding bells produce ever-larger wedding bills."

2008 Report on Consumer Debt and its effects on the family.

"Young Dream-Seekers Strapped by Debt," In the Christian Science Monitor, Draut says: "Compounding these generational challenges is what Ms. Yochim calls "incessant commercial wooing." On TV, she says, "it's all about luxury and excess and consumption," right down to the fancy lofts and apartments where sitcom characters live."That is not how people really live in New York City," she says. And with commercials filling 20 minutes of every televised hour, she adds, "No wonder we all suffer from 'the wants.' "

"Generation Debt" “It’s much more difficult for this generation to work or educate their way into the middle class,” she said. “They’ll probably never match their parents’ standard of living because of big loans, low income growth and a cost of housing that’s much more expensive than for a generation ago.”

Strapped: Why America's 20- and 30- Somethings Can't Get Ahead (2006) "When they leave campus, with a degree or without one, many will be much deeper in debt than parents or grandparents were.... With the possible exception of having a larger array of entertainment and other goods to purchase, members of Generation X appear to be worse off by every measure."

Good Advice for College Students: 20 to-dos now to get a good job later | By Penelope Trunk  |  New York Times | September 3, 2006

"First Job? Time to Check the Retirement Plan" (2008) Good financial advice about what to expect: take-home pay, minus required and optional deductions: taxes, health insurance, 401k plans.

"The Bank of Mom and Dad" (April 20, 2006): "The bottom line is that the assumption that financial obligations to children ended after graduation from high school or college is going the way of the pay phone. Today, parents are finding that they are on the hook for more, sometimes much more — contributions of thousands of dollars a year to help young men and women get on their feet economically, often into their 30's."

Ready or Not: Here Life Comes (2005) is a practical guide for modern twenty-somethings: Mel Levine writes:
"We're seeing an epidemic of people who are having a hard time making the transition to work -- kids who had too much success early in life and who've become accustomed to instant gratification.... a lifetime of success in school is followed abruptly by confusion and inertia when it comes time to find work that's meaningful and create a life of independence. Levine outlines four major qualities and values common in young adults who do make successful transitions...."

Review (of 3 books about young debtors) and "Poor Little Rich Kids" ) offers greatly different views.


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