'Hopeful generation' faces £482 billion shortfall
A new study involving 8,500 youngsters aged 11-19 years has revealed that a new "hopeful generation" is emerging with high financial expectations for the future, despite the current state of the economy.
According to a survey commissioned by NatWest, this gap between expectations and probable reality total £68,983 per person, a staggering £483 billion across the whole of the UK.
The survey revealed that 4.1 million (59 per cent) youngsters expect they will own a house by the time they are 25, despite the fact that the average age of a first-time buyer is 28 years old.
Nearly half (43 per cent) believed that they would come out of university with less than £10,000 in debt despite top-up fees leaving students with an average debt of £12,363, while 31 per cent optimistically believed that they will probably never fall into debt.
Savings for children's future might be beneficial given that on average, young people aged between 11 and 19 expected to be earning £31,190 by the time they were 25. Currently, 22-29 year olds earn an average annual salary of just £17,817 in the UK.
While the hopeful generation dreams of its future prosperity, today (March 10th) marked Debt Freedom Day, the day that the average UK worker has earned enough to service their debts.
According to research from Unbiased.co.uk, the average Briton works 70 days a year just to clear interest on credit cards and loan debts.
