7 Aspects of the American Dream Now Unattainable for Middle Class, According to Austin Williams

Middle-class life, once the hallmark of the American Dream, is becoming increasingly challenging to afford, according to money influencer Austin Williams. He recently used a YouTube video to share the observation many people share, but few voice.

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However, it doesn’t mean the dream is dead, but it does mean Americans have to put in more effort. Here are several more items that are no longer within reach for the average person of middle class status in the U.S.

Home ownership is a classic symbol of the American Dream, yet it is becoming increasingly out of reach for the middle class. More than 90 percent of Americans live where home prices have increased faster than the median income, with inflation-adjusted pricing jumping by 65% between 2000 and 2020. Average incomes during that time “barely rose,” the U.S. Department of the Treasury reported.

Williams said to buy a home in this increasingly challenging economic climate, Americans need to embrace the concept of planning ahead. He believes you can still attain that milestone by saving slowly for a down payment, building up a good credit score and waiting for the right opportunity.

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Americans have long considered college the pathway to the middle-class American Dream. However, as Williams highlighted in his video, more and more graduates are emerging with mountains of student debt and sustained unemployment.

According to the Education Data Initiative, the average bachelor’s degree student graduates with $29,550 in student loan debt. Unfortunately, repaying that debt proves more challenging than many students expect. ZipRecruiter data showed 23% of graduates take more than three months to find a job, and 5% of recent graduates are still searching.

Williams’s answer is to minimize borrowing and make sacrifices early. He believes in living at home when possible, and using resources like community college, scholarships and grants to minimize debt at graduation.

In 2004, 83% of retirees felt they had enough money to live comfortably. By 2024, that number had dropped to 74%. Although that’s still a respectable percentage, only 45% of workers believe they’ll be comfortable when it’s their turn.

Williams blamed this trend on the decline of the employer pension and the difficulty of saving in a challenging economy. He admitted that responsibility for retirement falls on the individual, and encouraged people to plan early. Keeping expenses low and investing intelligently are his go-to strategies.