November 28, 2004 09:50 PM
A Generation Weighed Down By Debt
Excerpt: Trying to get by. Those four little words echo plaintively around the country as young adults struggle to get established and stay afloat. Saddled with record-high college loans and credit-card debts at a time when wages are stagnant and the job market is tight, they may be the most indebted generation of young Americans ever.
Two weeks ago, when Beth O'Connell ordered several books from Amazon.com, she received a distressing surprise: She had hit the limit on her credit card. Sorry, no books.
"This is my first maxing out," explains Ms. O'Connell, a publicist in Watertown, Mass., who graduated from Boston University three years ago. "I think I'm making decent money, but it's just not enough with all the bills I pay. It's not like I'm going out shopping and doing crazy things. I'm just trying to get by."
Trying to get by. Those four little words echo plaintively around the country as young adults struggle to get established and stay afloat. Saddled with record-high college loans and credit-card debts at a time when wages are stagnant and the job market is tight, they may be the most indebted generation of young Americans ever.
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