According to a recent Western Union survey, Gen Y spends the most money on leisure activities and has more bills piled up than does any other demographic.

The latest Western Union Payments Money Mindset Index survey found Gen Y outspends all other age groups in leisure categories, which include hobbies, electronics, video games, DVDs, CDs, downloadable music and film, recreation and tickets to movies, sporting events and shows.

Additionally, 22% of Gen Y survey respondents recently added more bills than other demographics did, and 20% of Gen Y respondents used an urgent or same-day bill payment service in the past six months, Western Union said.

The survey also revealed new consumer trends in student loan debt and real estate. Among the student loan debt findings, 35% of consumers have $1,000 or more in student loan debt, about one in four graduating students with student loan debt will move home after graduation, 12% of students believe they may not graduate due to how much they owe and 21% of students said student loan debt has led to suffering grades.

The survey's real estate-related findings state that 47% of Gen Y members plan to buy a home in the next five years (10% anticipates making a purchase in the next 12 months), while only 29% of the overall population plans to do so.

Additionally, 64% of consumers are homeowners compared to 2011's 65%, 40% of homeowners believe the housing market will remain stable this year and 35% of homeowners think the economy will improve in 2012, Western Union said.

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Natasha Chilingerian

Natasha Chilingerian has been immersed in the credit union industry for over a decade. She first joined CU Times in 2011 as a freelance writer, and following a two-year hiatus from 2013-2015, during which time she served as a communications specialist for Xceed Financial Credit Union (now Kinecta Federal Credit Union), she re-joined the CU Times team full-time as managing editor. She was promoted to executive editor in 2019. In the earlier days of her career, Chilingerian focused on news and lifestyle journalism, serving as a writer and editor for numerous regional publications in Oregon, Louisiana, South Carolina and the San Francisco Bay Area. In addition, she holds experience in marketing copywriting for companies in the finance and technology space. At CU Times, she covers People and Community news, cybersecurity, fintech partnerships, marketing, workplace culture, leadership, DEI, branch strategies, digital banking and more. She currently works remotely and splits her time between Southern California and Portland, Ore.

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