Other findings include: For Immediate Release Contact: ? Generation X families in 2016 were more likely to have an individual account (IA) retirement plan than families of Millennial and Baby Boomer generations, but they were less likely to own Betsy Jaffe a home or have any type of retirement plan than the Baby Boomer families. Director, Marketing and Public Relations Employee Benefit Research Institute ? Generation X families had lower homeownership rates than did prior generations of families press-media@ebri.org when their heads were ages 40–51 (e.g., families with heads ages 40–51 in 2004). 202.775.6347 ? Generation X families in 2016 were more likely to have owned an IA retirement plan (60.1 Generation X Families Financially Behind Previous Generations at the percent) than families with heads ages 40–51 were in 2004 (58.7 percent). Same Ages ? The percentage of Generation X families holding debt in 2016 was slightly lower than it was for the families of the same ages in 2004 (86.8 percent vs. 88.5 percent). Gen X households are less likely to own a home or retirement plan and have lower net worths coupled with higher debt-to-income ratios ? The median net worth of families with heads ages 40–51 in 2004 was $151,861 in 2016 dollars. This value decreased to $103,130 for families with heads of these same ages in 2016. In addition, the median net worth in 2016 was below the 1992 value. Washington, D.C. – June 27, 2019 – A new study from the Employee Benefit Research Institute finds Generation X families are financially behind previous generations at the same ages. This “sandwich” generatio ? M n edi is freq an IA r uen et tly ire pa my en int g fo plan r their chi balances ld w ren’ ere s e the xpenses only fin , in aclu ncial din in g t dh icato eir cro v llalu ege es t edu hat cati we on re , hig as w hell er as in taking on2 the r 016 than espo t nh sib ey il iti we es re o in 1 f cari 99 n2 g and for t 2 h0 eir par 04. Spent ecificall s, all y whil , the e c m lo edi sin an g in o IA p n lan reti bal rem anent. ces fo Inr fa add m itio ilien s to facing these with head major s ag expens es 4 e0 s sim –51 w ultan ere eo $2u 7sl ,4 y8 , 6 G in enerati 1992o , $ n4 X 3 ex ,17 p0 eri in 2 enced 004, and the r $ ece 60s,0 sio 00 n in 2 of 20 01 06 8. when m any of them were in their 30s — a time when wage growth is typically at its highest — making it The study, “Comparing the Financial Status of Generation X Families,” is available at www.ebri.org. difficult for them to catch up. They are also the first generation to essentially only have defined contribution plans available to them in the private sector for the entirety of their career. With that comes the challenge of managing their finances throughout their working careers and retirement in About EBRI ways that prior generations did not need to. The Employee Benefit Research Institute is a private, nonpartisan, nonprofit research institute based in The EBRI Issue Brief, “Comparing the Financial Status of Generation X Families,” examines key financial Washington, DC, that focuses on health, savings, retirement, and financial security issues. EBRI does not status indicators of Generation X families and compares them with those of older and younger lobby and does not take policy positions. The work of EBRI is made possible by funding from its generations. The comparisons not only evaluate the Generation X families against other generations in members and sponsors, who include a broad range of public, private, for-profit and nonprofit 2016 but also by how the indicators differed when prior generations were the same ages as Generation organizations. For more information visit www.ebri.org. Xers were in 2016. In particular, homeownership, net worth, debt-to-asset ratios, and retirement plan ownership and balances are the emphasis of the analysis. “Generation X families were less likely than older generations to own their own home at their 2016 ages or have any type of retirement plan. Furthermore, their median net worth was lower than that of the families whose heads were ages 40–51 in 2004. They also had higher debt-to-asset ratios than prior generations, showing that their balance sheets were in worse shape than those of prior generations,” said Craig Copeland, EBRI senior research associate and author of the study. “However, it is important to note that families with incomes in the upper two quartiles had nearly equal results to those of prior generations. Unfortunately, the results for the families with incomes in the lower two quartiles were so much worse than prior generations that it pulled down the overall results. Furthermore, families with minority heads and heads without a bachelor’s degree also did not fare as well as their counterparts after 2004.”