Last November,  I wrote a post “In Search of  The American Dream”. We’ve beeen “laboring” extremely hard over the last several years and, on this 2009 Labor Day, I wanted to take another look at what we’re working so hard to achieve.

Recently MetLife completed a study and reported their findings in 2009 MetLife Study of the American Dream.  From my Residential Specialist magazine comes this synopsis of their study:

While the American Dream is still defined first and foremost by financial security (66%), the current version also emphasizes strong personal relationships.  Nearly half of respondents (44%) say the current economy has caused them to reevaluated their priorities.

About 1/3 of Americans feel they have already achieved the American Dream, down slightly from 37% a year ago; 72% believe they can still achieve it in their lifetime.  However, nearly half (495) worry that they won’t be able to sustain that dream.

The study also finds that 50% of Americans are only 1 month (two paychecks) away or less from being unable to meet their financial obligations if they were to lose their job, and more than half of these people say they could not survive financially for more than two weeks.  Nearly 3/4’s (74%) of Americans admit to having an inadequate financial safety net, and 62% of these respondents say they wish they had more cash on hand to tide them over for 3-6 months in the event of job loss.  Nationally, 44% of Americans expect the overall economy to continue to be worse in 2009 than in 2008 and 49% believe that the creation of new jobs will do the most to boost the economy.

John Wasik author of ”The Cul de Sac Syndrome” says:

“It was largely a vestige of our ego, of our aspirations, of the things we wanted most out of America. And that’s why I really fault the overemphasis on actually owning homes in terms of the American Dream.”

The Wall Street Journal had an article about the “American Dream” as well:

‘Surveys show that Americans buy into our gauzy platitudes about the character-building qualities of home ownership—at least those who still own them. A February Pew survey reported that nine out of 10 homeowners viewed their homes as a ‘comfort’ in their lives. But for millions of Americans at risk of foreclosure, the home has become something else altogether: the source of panic and despair”

Because of the financial crisis, people have changed their idea of what their American Dream is. This Labor Day many are struggling and their “American Dream” has vanished. 

© Copyright 2008-2009 Betty Jung. All Rights Reserved. Use of this article, photos and images without permission is a violation of federal copyright laws.

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