Gen Z and millennials are delaying important life events and taking financial considerations into account before entering into committed partnerships, according to a recent poll.
In a survey by Northwestern Mutual’s Planning & Progress, carried out among 2,740 US individuals in February and March of 2023, more than one-third of respondents stated that financial compatibility is more significant than intellectual and physical compatibility.
Financial compatibility was seen as being more significant than spiritual and physical compatibility by nearly half (49%) of Gen Zers. An additional 41% of the latter group placed financial compatibility above a matching of lifestyle and hobbies.
Additionally, the report claims that 40% of millennials and 32% of Gen Zers think that financial discussions should occur before a relationship becomes serious.
Over a third of Gen Z and 42% of millennials said money is a huge obstacle–or the single most difficult issue they deal with– while only 17% of Boomers say the same. Overall, 72% of all generations stated that the money conversation needed to happen “well ahead of marriage or living together”.
More than half of Gen Z (51%) and millennials (52%) were found to be living paycheck to paycheck, with money being their main concern, according to a separate Deloitte poll conducted this year. The majority of Gen Z and millennials also think that establishing a family and owning a home are unachievable or impractical.
