Younger Generations Usually Wealthier Than Their Predecessors

Younger generations in the Netherlands, such as the millennials, usually have more money and wealth than older generations, such as the baby boomers. Younger people can buy more at the same age than people could in the past. This is because purchasing power has often increased since 1977.

For example, people born between 1970 and 1985 have almost one and a half times the purchasing power at the age of 45 compared to the baby boomers. But people younger than 25 actually have less to spend, because they spend more time in school. As people age, purchasing power grows until about the age of 55.

After that, it often decreases. For baby boomers, purchasing power decreased due to the economic crisis in the 1980s and because women worked less when they had children. Younger generations, such as millennials, continue working more often and therefore have more purchasing power in their thirties.

The wealth of the younger generations is also usually greater. This is because between 1993 and 2024 people's wealth has increased. Between 2014 and 2022 house prices rose sharply, making people wealthier.

After these years, wealth declined a bit, mainly due to high inflation. Younger generations had more wealth at a young age than older generations had in the past. People from the Silent Generation, born before 1945, had the least wealth.

They also owned a home less often. Since the 1970s, more and more people have owned their own home. Especially people born between 1955 and 2000 owned a house just as often in their twenties.

Young people today, Generation Z, buy a house less often because houses are expensive and there are few available. The highest percentage of people with a home of their own is among the pragmatists, aged between 25 and 45. Older people from the Silent Generation have owned a home less often throughout their lives.

After their retirement, that decreases even further.