Slices of the Sandwich Generation
February 15, 2013 10:19 AM
The Sandwich Generation
The Great Recession and sluggish recovery have taken a disproportionate toll on young adults, the Pew report reads. Forty-eight percent of adults have provided some financial support to a grown child in the past year, with 27% providing the primary support; in 2005, those numbers were 42% and 20%, respectively. Heres a glance at the Sandwich Generation who they are and what stresses their finances.
Hispanics and the affluent
Thirty-one percent of Hispanic adults have a parent at least 65 years old and a dependent child. Only 24% of whites and 21% of blacks are in the same situation. Affluent adults are also more likely to find themselves in the Sandwich Generation: 43% of those making $100,000 or more, 25% of those making between $30,000 and $100,000 and 17% of those making less than $30,000 fit into the Sandwich Generation.
Parents with grown children in school
Out of parents who are providing the primary financial support to a grown child, 52% say the support is because the child or children are enrolled in school and 46% say the support is for some other reason. In 2005, 56% listed school as the main reason for support and 39% said it was for some other reason.
Adult children caring for a widowed mother
More financial help is flowing to aging mothers than to fathers, the Pew report says. Out of those whose father has died, 42% have given financial aid to their mother in the past year. Only 25% of those with a deceased mother have done the same for an aging father.
Stressed, but happy
Among respondents who are supporting both a parent and a child, 28% say they live comfortably, 30% have enough to meet basic needs with a little left over, 30% say they are just able to make expenses and 11% say they dont have enough to live on. However, those in the Sandwich Generation are, if anything, happier than their counterparts. Some 31% of sandwiched individuals report being very happy, and 52% say they are pretty happy. Among other adults, 28% say they are very happy and 51% are pretty happy.
