A recent study shows that a growing number of Americans are pessimistic about the outlook for their financial future.
Research from LendingTree found that only 38% of Americans who don’t currently consider themselves wealthy believe they will be at some point in the future. This figure is a drop from 41% in 2023, 44% in 2022, and 51% in 2019.
To make matters worse, says the report, the standard for what defines wealth has also diminished.
“Dreams of mansions and luxury cars have fallen by the wayside. Today, over half of Americans equate wealth with feeling financially secure or living without financial worry,” read the study.
The report found that parents of kids 18 and over have experienced the greatest drop in optimism since the last time the survey was conducted. This demographic is now eight percentage points less confident in their chance of becoming wealthy compared to just two years ago. And parents of children under 18 are not far behind, experiencing a five percentage point drop during the period.
Gen Zers (ages 18 to 28) have also taken a hit, with their financial optimism slipping seven percentage points since 2023.
According to LendingTree, economic headwinds are to blame for the growing pessimism among Americans, particularly among these groups.
Compared to just two years ago, annual costs of raising a child have risen 35.7%. As previously reported in The Dallas Express, a report from SmartAsset estimated it would cost $22,337 this year to raise one child in Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington. Despite the high price in the metroplex, it pales in comparison to some locations, like Boston-Cambridge-Newton, Massachusetts, with an eye-watering cost of $39,221.
“Life’s really expensive in 2025, and budgets are really tight for so many American households,” Matt Schulz, LendingTree’s chief consumer finance analyst, said to Newsweek.”They’re worn out by high prices, high interest rates and economic uncertainty, and it is taking a toll.”
President Trump has long maintained that the Federal Reserve should move to cut still-elevated interest rates, which have persisted at 4.5% since December 2024.