Young adults of color, particularly those who are Black and Latinx, have borne a disproportionate share of economic hardship, as decades of systemic racism have made their communities more vulnerable to the effects of these crises. This report shares new data on the financial lives of young adults,...

The purpose of this white paper is to outline how the ongoing struggle of many consumers to manage their finances can be mitigated in the future by focusing specifically on youth financial education. What we propose here is a comprehensive strategy to impart personal financial-management skills to...

The unemployment rate for young workers ages 16–24 jumped from 8.4% to 24.4% from spring 2019 to spring 2020 in the United States, representing four million youth. While unemployment for their counterparts ages 25 and older rose from 2.8% to 11.3% the Spring 2020 unemployment rates were even...

Considering the increasing indebtedness of young people, the ubiquitous advertising of credit, their possible ignorance of how credit operates, etc., this article examines young people’s perception of credit, the factors that have moulded that perception, and the latter’s consequences on credit...

The effects of different types of debt can vary widely: some debt is considered productive by advancing young adult households' financial health while other debt can be unproductive, pushing their financial health out of reach. A savings account may help young adult households reduce their reliance...

This article in the Economic Insights series from Statistics Canada examines the economic well-being of millennials by comparing their household balance sheets to those of previous generations of young Canadians. Measured at the same point in their life course, millennials were relatively better...

This new research study: the 2016 UK Children and Young People’s Financial Capability Survey, is the first of its kind: a nationally representative survey of the financial knowledge, attitudes and behaviours of 4- to 17-year-olds and their parents, living in the UK. A total of 4,958 children and...

Using data from a survey of young, enlisted Army service members, we explore whether soldiers have emergency funds and other types of savings. We find different sets of predictors for having an emergency fund and for the amount held in the fund. In general, education and money management...

The report discussed in this brief, “Building blocks to help youth achieve financial capability: A new model and recommendations,” illuminates critical attributes, abilities, and opportunities acquired during the years spanning preschool through young adulthood that support the development...

This is a household profile of a participant in the U.S. Financial Diaries project. Sandra Young, 52, is an African American woman living in Brooklyn with her grown children: Tyler, 25, and Kayla, 24. Sandra manages several branches of a tax preparation agency, which means that she earns most of...

Canadian households are now deeper in debt than at any time since Statistics Canada began collecting debtor data in 1961. Debt, payment delinquency, and bankruptcy are increasingly a part of the lives of the young, the socioeconomically marginalized, and renters. This In-Brief explores the...

One promising opportunity for teaching young people about financial capability occurs when they are participating in programs that provide youth training and employment. Nearly 20 million youth were employed in July 2013 alone, 2 so youth employment programs offered in local communities...

Across the country, municipal Summer Youth Employment Programs (SYEPs) provide hundreds of thousands of young people, often from low-income communities, with short-term work experience and a regular paycheck. Building off this existing, widespread infrastructure and connection to young people, the...

The federal Head Start program provides quality early childhood education and other supports to children in low-income families living at or below the federal poverty line. Head Start prepares young children for school by enhancing their social and cognitive development, and delivers educational,...

Canada cannot and need not allow yet another generation of Indigenous citizens to languish in poverty. At a time when workforce replacement and skilled labour shortages occupy the attention of both business and government alike, the youngest and fastest growing demographic in the country struggles...

The coronavirus pandemic has tested the limits of Canadians over the past 20 months. What began as a health crisis quickly morphed into an economic crisis, with the spread of COVID‑19 shocking large segments of the economy and leaving many without paycheques. While no generation has been...

A toolkit for parents/caregivers with a child with a disability ages 2 to 10, containing: An everyday childhood action guide Early planning priorities for parents with a child with a disability (upcoming webcast) Accessing financial resources for a young child with a disability (upcoming...

A highlight of some of the findings reported in this briefing: Disposable income declined for most households in the fourth quarter of 2020, with the largest losses for the lowest-income earners (-10.2%). Compensation of employees—of which wages and salaries make up the largest share—was...

The financial resources available to families with young children are an important factor affecting child development, and they can have long-term impacts on socioeconomic outcomes in adulthood. This article summarizes the findings of a new study using Statistic Canada’s data and analyzes the...

The economic impact of the COVID-19 crisis has brought to light the deeply rooted financial struggles that many Americans face. This paper shows that even before the pandemic, a substantial share of households was already anxious and stressed about their personal finances. The greatest levels of...

Children’s Savings Account (CSA) programs offer a promising strategy to build a college-bound identity and make post-secondary education an achievable goal for more low- and moderate-income children. CSAs provide children (starting in elementary school or younger) with savings accounts and...

This handbook covers the following topics: An understanding of why financial planning is important and how to align your financial objectives with your life goals and values. An overview of common financial planning components and tools available to individuals with a disability (including...

Over the first three quarters of 2020, disposable income for the lowest-income households increased 36.8%, more than for any other households. At the same time, the youngest households recorded the largest gain in their net worth (+9.8%). These changes were driven by unprecedented increases in...

This study of data from the Distributions of Household Economic Accounts compares households' economic well-being from a macro-economic accounts perspective, as measured by net saving and net worth for each generation when the major income earner for a household in one generation reached the same...

Millennials (individuals age 18–37 in 2018) are the largest, most highly educated, and most diverse generation in U.S. history This paper assesses the financial situation, money management practices, and financial literacy of millennials to understand how their financial behaviour has changed...