The generation of today's young people has different values. The very concept of owning things is no longer relevant. People are investing money in experience: it will not depreciate, and it cannot be stolen.
Numerous studies by Western experts show that the generation of so-called "millennials", i.e. people who are now up to 30-35 years old rarely buy houses, and even less often - cars. In fact, they don't make super expensive purchases at all. Except for the iPhones, of course.
In America, people under the age of 35 are generally referred to as the "tenant generation." Why it happens? Some sociologists are convinced that this is due to the fact that there are too many financial cataclysms among today's youth. That is why people are simply afraid to take "serious" loans.
But even this is not the main thing. The fact is that the generation of modern young people differs from the generation of their fathers in other values.
Young people today are redefining the concept of success. If previously those who owned their own housing and a car were considered successful people, now in special honor those who invested in experience and impressions: travelers, extreme lovers, startups.
Young people deliberately refuse to buy real estate and even furniture, preferring to rent them. The point is that now people do not want prosperity and stability, but a flexible schedule, financial and geographic independence.
Material things simply cease to interest people. Why own a car in the US when you have Uber or Lyft? This is, in fact, a personal car with a driver. And using Uber is no more expensive than owning your own car.
Why buy a house in a scenic location and travel there on vacation when you can find accommodation through Airbnb anywhere in the world? You will not have to overpay for rent or buy real estate in your favorite country. It's the same with real estate in your hometown. First, you don't know how long you will live where you live. Secondly, why take out a mortgage for 40 years if you can put up with the fact that you will spend your whole life in rented housing? In the end, you are likely to change your job in the next few years, and if you rent a house, then nothing prevents you from moving closer to the office. Forbes reports that today's young Americans change jobs on average every three years.
The very concept of owning things is no longer relevant.
Atlantic columnist James Gamblin explains the phenomenon this way: “Over the past decade, psychologists have conducted a huge amount of research proving that, in terms of happiness and a sense of well-being, it is much more profitable to spend money on new experiences rather than new things. It brings more joy."
These theses are confirmed by the journal Psychological Science.
Here are excerpts from Gamblin's article:
“It turns out that people no longer want to hear stories about where you bought a house there. They want to hear what a great weekend you have had. " Amit Kumar, PhD student at Cornell University.
"Even a bad experience ends up being a great story." James Gamblin.
- “Social interaction between people is of decisive importance in the question of whether they will be happy or not. So you have to talk to other people and have a lot of friends. Of course, others will be more pleased to hear about how you went on a crazy trip or how you lived in a wild country for a year, and not about how many apartments you have already bought. " Amir Kumar.
There is something else. The fact is that the things we own, especially if they are very expensive, make us worry about their condition. Buy a car and you will flinch every time someone's alarm goes off outside the window. Buy a house, bring expensive equipment into it - and you will be afraid of a robbery. Not to mention the fact that cars are scratched, banged, and ultra-expensive TVs tend to fail after a year of operation. Nobody will take the experience you have gained from you.
Our parents did not have the opportunity to travel as cheaply and as often as we do. They did not have the opportunity to have fun as we are now. It was not as easy for them to start a new business as it was for us. So they invested in houses and cars, and we don't want to do that anymore. In the end, any of our purchases, if it is not a house or apartment, will depreciate over time. And if we remember how quickly real estate becomes cheaper during the crisis, then everything becomes even more obvious.
Therefore, we also recommend that you invest in experience: it will not depreciate, and it cannot be stolen.
