I'm definitely feeling like I'm falling out of the middle class since the Great Recession. But I am very thankful I currently have a job.
At this point, I'm not better off than my parents. I am definitely worse off than they are.
My dad makes more than I do. I just bought a condo in the last couple of years. They bought a house when they were 22 or 23. I would have loved to have a house, but it's just way out of our league right now.
I'm more concerned about retirement than they are. They are pretty close to being ready. I don't have very much at all. I feel like I'll have to work until I'm 80. Hopefully I will be able to.
Almost three years ago, I passed the CPA exam in hopes of bettering my chances to find a job with the possibility of upward mobility, some kind of retirement and better earning potential. I have been looking for a new job ever since because I need to fulfill the state-required "audit hours" in order to obtain the actual license. I'm older than most people trying to do this same thing...the jobs seem to be going to recent college grads.
Nearly a third of Americans who grow up middle class face downward mobility in adulthood. And that's before the Great Recession hit.
