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Much is said about the decline in opportunity for young Americans, from the job market to home ownership. But the dire reality is that the present may be remembered as the good old days by the next generation because, without major policy changes, the economic outlook for America’s youth is set to deteriorate significantly in the decades ahead.
Housing is an important focal point. After declining sharply for decades, mortgage rates have more than doubled since the pandemic. Higher interest rates and soaring home prices mean that in 2025, an American earning the median income must spend 31% of their income to afford the mortgage on a median-priced home, even after saving a 20% downpayment. In 2019, the figure was 26% of income. Meanwhile, the cost of renting has also risen faster than average wages over the last two decades.
Continue reading the entire piece here at the Washington Examiner (paywall)
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Daniel Di Martino is a fellow at the Manhattan Institute and the founder of the Dissident Project, a speakers’ bureau for young immigrants from socialist countries. He earned his Ph.D. in economics at Columbia University.