4 Financial Benefits Millennials Got that Future Generations Will Likely Never See Again

While much of the conversation about millennials and finance nowadays lean toward the idea that millennials have lots of debt and few financial benefits, this isn’t always the case. In fact, there are surprisingly several financial benefits that future generations likely won’t enjoy that millennials did. 

In some strange reality, college tuition was much less expensive as millennials were coming up in the world, as were interest rates for buying a home. Unfortunately, living off a financial cliff is more the standard today, so it’s okay to look back at some of these financial perks with longing eyes. 

Lower Housing Prices

While millennials didn’t enjoy a super low-price housing market as baby boomers did, there is no question millennials had some strong opportunities coming up. Those born between 1981 and 1996 saw the median US home price in 2000 at around $165,000, which felt affordable as a starter home for newly married millennials looking to start a family. 

According to the National Association of Realtors, the US median home price as of January 2025 was $396,000. Not only is this a significant jump in price, but it requires a far greater salary to afford and likely enables less equity to be built over time since first-time home-buyers today are likely buying toward the top of a real estate market. 

Millennials also had the advantage of entering the market shortly after the 2008 mortgage bubble burst, when the price of homes, especially foreclosed homes, was greatly reduced. 

Unfortunately, rising construction costs, land shortages, and even investors and/or flippers buying single-family homes have helped increase the price, astronomically so in some cities.

Some prices even exceed inflation-adjusted norms, which means younger generations like Gen-Z or Alpha will not only find these houses unaffordable, but they will also no longer be the equity investments baby boomers and millennials enjoy. 

Accessible Education Financing

During the 2000 – 2001 academic year, the average in-state tuition at a public four-year university was approximately $3,362. Fast forward 25 years, and this number is now $11,610, a 245% increase. At the time, early on, this would have meant student loans, but a much more manageable student debt load that felt like it would be more relative to the earning potential millennials were graduating and finding. 

There is also a case to be made that when millennials were starting to enter four-year schools, federal loans were available with fewer restrictions, which meant that the path toward getting a degree had fewer roadblocks. 

Another benefit for early millennials was a stronger Pell Grant funding opportunity. Some states also provided subsidies for attending public four-year universities, which reduced costs (and eventual debt) even more. Unfortunately, these grants and reduced costs have not kept pace with inflation, so younger generations, like Gen Z, will undoubtedly be saddled with more student debt. 

Unfortunately, the debt-to-income ratio for younger generations will be less favorable without loan forgiveness, which is less likely with a new presidential administration. Many millennials got their four-year degrees and, in some cases, advanced degrees just in time before the metaphorical bubble started to burst on college tuition pricing. 

More Favorable Interest Rates

This directly relates to the idea of more affordable home purchases and that interest rates were far more favorable when millennials were looking for their first home. It wasn’t uncommon to see mortgage rates between 3-4% in the 2010s, after the mortgage crisis, which meant homes were far less expensive, down payments were lower, and everything about owning a home cost less. 

Fast-forward to today, March 2025. The mortgage rate was between 6.6 and 6.7% as of the middle of the month. The percentage difference here is tantamount to tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, more in interest payments over the course of a 30-year fixed-rate loan. 

This means that younger generations have less purchasing power, which means not only are home loans affected, but Gen-Z and Alpha now have to be more mindful of the cars they purchase, student loan repayments, etc. In some strange way, as much as millennials struggle, the lower interest rates here allow them to build wealth with more disposable income, at least for a while. 

Today, Gen-Z and Alpha generations not only face a higher interest rate but there is no sign of interest rates coming back down anytime soon. In other words, future borrowers will face steep costs when purchasing a first home. 

Supportive Economic Conditions

Overall, millennials are struggling along with younger generations today, but this doesn’t eliminate the idea that they had some supportive economic conditions during their formative years. One of the benefits millennials enjoyed was when the country started to emerge from the “Great Recession” of 2008. 

As a result, the tech industry was booming, and job opportunities, especially high-paying jobs, were becoming more plentiful in tech sectors, e-commerce, and even fields like renewable energy. This economic recovery gave millennials more opportunity to start putting money aside for the future, even if it wasn’t as much as their parents and grandparents could set aside. 

In addition, the rise of the gig economy and the side hustle began to take shape, providing another income avenue with which money could be used for savings, emergency funds, and more. 

Unfortunately, a challenging set of conditions has led to market and economic volatility in a post-pandemic world, which has meant significant layoffs in tech after a 2020 hiring boom. Millennial timing just so happened to be a unique mix of economic recovery and tech innovation, a cycle that is unlikely to be repeated in the near future. 

Limited Opportunities for Future Generations

Younger generations are entering the workforce during a unique period of high inflation that is substantially outpacing the cost of living, rising geopolitical tensions with tariffs, and market volatility, all of which are bound to make hiring more challenging. 

Even if younger generations can find high-paying jobs, the rising cost of living has made it all the more difficult to create disposable income, with or without a side gig. This makes investing for the future all the more challenging, as much of Gen-Z income is necessary to survive the now, never mind the future. 

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