Your Independent Journal from the Heartland
Generation Z, typically being defined as people born between 1997 to 2012, is in serious financial trouble. GenZers aren’t making as much money as they would like to. Over half said they don’t earn enough to live the life they want, and 55% don’t have adequate savings to cover three months of expenses. Gen Z may be the first generation of Americans to be poorer than their parents.
According to a report by the National Association of Realtors, the path to homeownership continues to get longer, with the median age of first-time home buyers hitting an all-time high of 40 in 2025. In 1991, the typical first-time buyer was able to purchase a home by the time they were 28 years old. That number gradually climbed to 33 in 2020, then shot up to 36 in 2022 and 38 in 2024.
I propose 10 steps for the United States to improve the economic viability for our future generations.
1. Expand ESOPs (Employee Stock Ownership Programs)
My father sold his business to an employee stock ownership company thirty years ago. The company is still thriving as are the employees. I recently spoke with one employee who has been working for the company for more than 30 years: her stock is now worth more than $300,000!
As of 2024, the National Center for Employee Ownership (NCEO) estimates there are 6,500 employee stock ownership plans in the United States. These plans includes 14.7 million participants and are holding over $2.1 trillion in assets.
KKR, formerly Kohlberg, Kravis, Roberts and Company, is one of the largest private investment companies in the world with over $500 billion in assets. Since 2011 KKR has invested in 50 companies that have provided ownership programs to 110,000 workers. Pete Stavros has been the KKR executive promoting employee stock ownership.
The idea, Stavros says, is simple: give rank-and-file workers a stake in their company on top of salary—plus a voice in how the business is run day-to-day. With skin in the game, those workers will be motivated to work smarter and harder. “Ownership is really an ethos, it’s a mindset,” Stavros said. While it’s common today for executives to be compensated with shares, fewer than a quarter of private sector employees own a stake in their company. “[Employee ownership] is the right thing to do that also happens to be good business,” Stavros said.
2. Tax Reform
We have a higher tax on low income wage earners than those at the top. In particular, we have a payroll tax of 12.4% on salaries up to $176,100. We should absolutely eliminate the cap on Social Security taxes. Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, should pay payroll tax on all of his income, as should all multi-millionaires.
3. Federal Reserve Housing Assistance and Increase Housing Stock
The Fed has the power to fix the housing market. Congress is unlikely to propose any legislation that will improve the housing crisis. Only the Federal Reserve has the power to increase our housing supply. The Federal Reserve established the Secondary Market Corporate Credit Facility (SMCCF) to support credit to employers by providing liquidity to the market for outstanding corporate bonds. The Fed can use this program to purchase low-interest bonds from major public home builders: D.R. Horton, Lennar Corporation, the Pulte Group, NVR, Taylor Morrison, KB Home, Meritage Homes Corporation and the Clayton Properties Group. This will increase the housing supply and make homeownership more affordable for our youngest generation.
4. Education Loan Forgiveness
The total U.S. student loan debt is over $1.7 trillion, with federal loans making up the vast majority and impacting over 40 million Americans. The average federal debt per borrower hovers around $39,000 to $40,000.
We should provide an economic incentive to volunteer for the military, Peace Corp and AmeriCorps by providing loan payoffs for every year of service. After World War II, Congress enacted the GI Bill that gave military veterans living expenses and tuition for college. Ten years after World War II, a total 7.8 million veterans used GI Bill educational benefits to advance their civilian careers which drove the US economy to all-time highs. Most historians and economists have found the GI Bill to have been a major political and economic success.
A new GI bill is now in effect that pays for veterans’ college expenses in a similar way that the original GI Bill did after World War II. The main provisions of the act includes funding 100% of a public four-year undergraduate education to a veteran who has served three years on active duty since Sept. 11, 2001. However, unlike the original GI Bill, no living expenses are included.
We should expand the current federal law to provide similar benefits for those volunteering for AmeriCorps, the Peace Corps and other public service. In addition, the law should provide student loan forgiveness to those who become public school teachers, as well as nurses and doctors who work in rural communities underserved by the medical profession.
5. Roll Back Tuition
We can cut coaches salaries, reduce non-teaching staff, cut luxury amenities, stop lavish spending on college athletics and facilities. The Center for College Affordability and Productivity has produced a white paper that lays out “25 Ways to Reduce the Cost of College.” Fewer than 20 collegiate athletic programs in this country make money, while many schools lose $10 million or more in their sports operations. College should be primarily about education, not sports, and not about luxury amenities for students.
6. Raise Minimum Wages
Many states have raised minimum wages while the Federal minimum wage remains stagnant at $7.25 where it has been since 2009. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, prices have gone up 55% since then. Nineteen states raised their minimum wage in 2026 with most reaching $15 per hour. The Federal government should raise the minimum wage to at least $12 an hour to keep pace with inflation.
7. Lower Interest Rates
High interest rates make it very difficult and expensive for first time home buyers to buy a home. The Federal Reserve can lower interest rates further to help first-time homebuyers. This will also help the overall economy.
8. Medicare for All
High health insurance costs make it difficult to save for a down payment. The United States is the only wealthy country not to have a national health insurance program. We can expand Medicare to cover all workers and this would reduce the massive costs imposed by health insurance companies.
9. Down Payment Assistance (DPA)
The federal government can implement a down payment assistance program to assist first-time home buyers. San Diego currently has a program that helps first-time home buyers. In San Diego, low-income, first-time homebuyers may qualify for a low-interest, deferred payment loan of up to 22% of the purchase price for down payment assistance and 4%, up to $10,000 in closing costs assistance. We need a nationwide program like the one in San Diego.
10. Reduce Bank Fees
In 2024, 11% of Americans paid overdraft fees, particularly affecting low-income earners. The average overdraft fee is around $35. Many of the largest banks have overdraft fees around $35. Bank of America stands out for its $10 overdraft fee, which it lowered from $35 in 2022. Overdraft and non-sufficient funds fees generate hundreds of millions of dollars for banks, and in the case of JPMorgan Chase, over $1.1 billion. Banks made $5.8 billion on overdraft fees in 2024. In 2022 credit card late fees cost consumers a record $15 billion. Statista.com. These bank fees fall hardest on our poorest and youngest citizens. Congress can limit the amount that banks charge for these fees.
Conclusion
All of these changes will make it easier for GenZers to buy a home. These changes will help to restore the American dreams for millions of disillusioned young Americans.
Joel D. Joseph is a lawyer, an economist and author of 15 books, including “Inequality in America: 10 Causes and 10 Cures.”
