Housing is a great example. Instead of getting into the initial mortgage, we're paying rent for longer, and have a harder time coming up with the money for the down payment... In part because the rent is, to borrow a phrase, too damn high.
"Millennials are delaying all kinds of major life decisions, like getting married and having kids, so it makes sense that they would also delay buying a home," said Zillow Chief Economist Dr. Svenja Gudell. "We know Millennials value homeownership and want to buy. The next challenge will be figuring out how they can save for a downpayment and qualify for a mortgage, especially while the rental market is so unaffordable all over the country. The last hurdle will be finding a home they like amidst very tight inventory, especially among starter homes."
And then there's education. The low-cost public universities have turned into massive debt generators.
The entry points to the wealth curve are more and more beset by the vampires of finance and their rent-seeking necromancers, summoning up undying debt to prey on unsuspecting youth. Inequality is growing wider as a result.
Why? Not because of the free market, but because the fed keeps goosing the interest rate downward to stimulate growth. Will I be able to do such a thing? No.
Looking at wealth by age bracket. It is strongly correlated, which shouldn't surprise anyone. The longer you work the more you save. A 20 year old is going to have a lot less wealth than a 60 year old. I'm not sure that will ever change.