Tag Archives: American Dream

Homeownership rates back to 1999 levels

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With the economic and housing troubles of the last few years, the homeownership rate in the United States is now down to 66.9%, the lowest level seen since 1999:

The percentage of households that owned their homes was unchanged at 66.9 percent in the July-September quarter, the Census Bureau said Tuesday. That’s the same as the April-June quarter.

The last time the rate was lower was in 1999, when the rate was 66.7 percent.

The nation’s homeownership rate was around 64 percent from 1985 through 1995. It then rose dramatically during the Clinton and Bush administrations, hitting a peak of more than 69 percent in 2004 at the height of the housing boom.

The economic boom played a large role but both Clinton and Bush pushed homeownership across the board as an unmitigated good for America and its citizens. How will current politicians respond regarding homeownership? We received a number of pieces of campaign literature in the mail this election season where both Republicans and Democrats talked about helping to save homes. Will owning a home be seen as something that helps uphold the American dream or will the rhetoric change?

Many Americans not optimistic that their childrens’ lives will be better

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A recent Bloomberg poll asked Americans whether they felt the future would be better for their children. The results:

What optimism there is about the immediate future doesn’t carry over to the longer term. Pluralities of those polled say they’re not hopeful they will have enough money in retirement and expect they will have to keep working to make up the difference. More than 50 percent aren’t confident or are just somewhat confident their children will have better lives than they have.

This belief has been an important part of the American Dream for decades. American parents seem willing to sacrifice much for their children to help insure this. Americans are usually quite optimistic about the future and tend to believe American ingenuity and progress will lead the way.

A question I would like to ask on these surveys: would it be okay for your children to have the same quality of life as you have experienced? If not, why not?

(A note about the reporting: many numerical statistics from the survey are thrown out. However, there is little context. The author tries to throw in some commentary about how these statistics link up with what is going on in the country or with a few quotes but this doesn’t add much. Additionally, let’s break down the numbers a bit more: do they differ by gender, race, region, political party, etc.?)

“Is the American Dream dead?”

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President Obama was at a town hall meeting earlier this week where he fielded questions about some difficult topics. One question came from a law school graduate who is struggling at age 30: “Is the American dream dead?”

This is an interesting question. One response to this guy, which I don’t think would really placate him or be charitable, would be to say that one personal case of difficulties does not mean the American Dream has disappeared. On the other hand, this question could lead to the question of whether the American Dream will be redefined in the future because of present economic and social realities.

One part of the American Dream that could complicate the future definition is that Americans tend to want better things for their children. It is fascinating to go back to community studies like Middletown and see in the 1920s how parents wanted their wanted their children to get ahead, primarily through education. What if this is no longer feasible for many? Perhaps the American Dream will simply level off for a while rather than continue to expand. But this would mean parents (and children) would need to change their expectations about what the future might hold.