Today’s Young Professionals: The Degree Rich, Money Poor

Today’s young professionals are in a difficult financial position. Often squeezed between supporting aging parents and young children of their own, the under-40 crowd is often referred to as The Sandwich Generation. However, we prefer to use a more descriptive, more encompassing definition which includes the issues of retirement planning, career guidance, educational goals, and issues at home. We lovingly call this unique group the Degree Rich, Money Poor™.

Who Are They?
Sandwich Generation. Debt Generation. Baby Boom Echo. Generation X/Y. The media uses many names to describe this emerging group, but until now, no label had fully described this growing population of young professionals who continue to yearn for financial direction.

Interestingly, the Degree Rich, Money Poor are a college-educated, tech-savvy, autonomous group which carries an attitude of “I could do everything for myself…but I’m willing to pay someone else to save me time, energy, and frustration.” Whether living at home with mom and dad, or out in the “real world” struggling with student loan repayment, credit repair, marriage, mortgages, and children, this under-40 group wants to maintain full control while minimizing any inconveniences. Moreover, they are smart enough to realize that they don’t know everything…particularly about issues of personal finance.

Generation 2.0
The Degree Rich, Money Poor are master outsourcers, willing to delegate tedious, menial activities associated with financial matters. As qualified financial professionals, we are usually brought in to serve as co-pilots: setting the course, reading the maps, and keeping the client on track. But make no mistake, the Degree Rich, Money Poor want to steer, and they keep their hands and feet firmly on the wheel and pedals at all times.

In order to accomplish this, the Degree Rich, Money Poor embrace and exploit the productivity rewards of technology. For example, young professionals in California show no hesitation when hiring our Georgia-based firm to serve as their “virtual financial planners” who will meet with them via remote desktop sharing and web conferencing tools. In fact, we have countless remote clients throughout the country with whom we “share” Word documents and PowerPoint presentations via the Internet during our advising sessions.

Just Give it to Me Straight
The under-40 professional is also starving for honest, ethical, professional financial advice. Most Degree Rich, Money Poor–like their parents–are either unaware of, or simply don’t have the necessary resources to employ the basic principles of personal finance:

1. Spend less than you earn
2. Make the money you have work for you
3. Prepare for the unexpected; save a little

A great deal of our time is spent educating every client before we really get into the nuts & bolts of their financial situations. In fact, we often setup a meeting in the beginning of the engagement just to teach our clients about credit repair, insurance, and other urgent issues. Not surprisingly, the Degree Rich, Money Poor soak up honest, professional advice like an unused sponge.

How to Find a Competent Planner
Qualified, competent financial planners are plentiful and can be found through websites of industry-leading organizations such as the Financial Planning Association, the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors, and the Garrett Planning Network. We also encourage consumers to work with advisors who have invested the time and energy to seek higher credentials. In our opinion, the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional is at the top of the heap. Also, young professionals will do well to find an advisor who operates an hourly, fee-only practice.