Gen Z Started Earlier (And Is Still Behind)

Gen Z started investing earlier than the generation that got the house. The average Gen Z'er began saving for retirement at 24, the average baby boomer began at 34.

More than a third of 25-year-olds in 2024 had moved significant money into an investment account since turning 22, up from 6% in 2015. (The Hill, The Feed, August 2026, citing Investopedia, JPMorganChase Institute and Vanguard)

By every measure anyone actually tells young people to hit, this generation is ahead.

So the question worth asking is why a generation that started a decade earlier than its grandparents still lives at home in large numbers, still reports feeling behind, and still talks about money like the ending is already written?

It is not a discipline problem, and it never was.

It is a reality that if the wealthy and corporations can use borrowing power and policy influence to outpace Gen Z returns, then it is incumbent on Gen Z to take corresponding action to keep up (or face the alternative of being left behind...).

A house was an appreciating asset you could own early, with borrowed money, and live inside while it did its work. Our parents and grandparents captured the delta measured by: the appreciating value of their homes less the borrowing rate. 

We believe the elements of the strategy remain today, and that a long time horizon can support and enable the next generation to utilize its borrowing power by capturing the delta measured by: the market return over the investment period less the borrowing rate over the same period. 

Gen Z have already done the hard part, what is missing is a tool built for it. That is what Ruth is: broad market exposure, earlier, with non-recourse capital that won’t leave you owing more than you put in.

Join the early access waitlist at ruthinvestment.com.

Ruth is launching soon. Registration as an investment adviser is pending; Ruth is not yet licensed and is not currently providing advisory services.

This is for informational purposes only and is not financial advice. Investing involves risk, including the possible loss of principal.