Despite a tight housing market, millennials find new paths to wealth creation

by Aaron Allen, The Seattle Medium & (About this series—This article, inspired by& Deloitte research, is part of a series in which five Black-owned publications around the United States explore the key factors that contribute to racial and generational gaps in acquiring wealth.) People under the age of 35 are at risk of falling behind their parents in achieving financial security, according to research by Deloitte. The Seattle Medium spoke to three area millennials who are fighting the odds by improving their financial profiles in the hopes of building a brighter future for themselves and their families.& & While sitting on her balcony overlooking Seattle, Kaela Allen sometimes ponders the notion of purchasing a home. But, said Allen, who works in public policy, buying a house “is not in her short-term plans” because she does not believe this traditional way of building wealth is attainable right now. “Homeownership is definitely a dream,” Allen said. “I think I see it as something in a very far-off reality.” Unfortunately, Allen’s plight is not unique. According to Deloitte’s analysis of the 2019 Survey of Consumer Finances from the Federal Reserve Board, “only 36.2 percent of those under age 35 (mostly millennials) owned a...