"Credit scores are lower than they've ever been, particularly with Gen Z," Goodarzi told Editorial Director Andrew Nusca at Fortune Brainstorm AI last week. Credit balances across the board are also the highest they've been, Goodarzi added, but Gen Z are disproportionately hurting in this category, too. "[Gen Z] credit card balances are up 36-37%," Goodarzi added. But there's one silver lining: "They still have jobs," Goodarzi said. "And that's what's really keeping things together.""
"When looking at median pay adjusted for inflation, Gen Z is faring better than previous generations at their age, according to a Pew Research Center report in 2024. But their purchasing power is lower than previous young generations as inflation continues to eat away at their paychecks. Despite inflation slowing since its pandemic spike, headline inflation ticked up to 3% in September, well above the Fed's target rate of 2%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics."
Gen Z consumers are accumulating credit-card balances at record levels, with balances up roughly 36–37% and credit scores lower than ever. Employment remains relatively strong among Gen Z, which helps households service debt. Median pay for Gen Z adjusted for inflation is higher than previous generations at the same age, but purchasing power has declined as inflation erodes wages. Headline inflation rose to 3% in September, above the Fed's 2% target. More than half of cities have Gen Z median incomes under $50,000, and combined millennials and Gen Z hold just 10.7% of U.S. wealth.
Read at Fortune
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]