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An old photo of Jochem holding baby Clementine in front of their house, another baby photo, and current portraits of them both
By the age of 30, Jochem had the great Australian dream in his grasp. His daughter Clementine wishes she could afford to live the life her parents did.(ABC News: Mridula Amin)

Chart shows the average 2023 home loan is more than eight times what a 34-year-old earns on average.
Chart shows the average 2023 home loan is more than eight times what a 34-year-old earns on average. (Datawrapper)

For a variety of reasons, it's much tougher to pay off a home.(Datawrapper)

Collage: Harry sitting outdoors, old photos of him as a child, his house and his father when he was younger
Harry grew up in a home his father built. Saving for his own home has been a challenge.(ABC News: Mridula Amin, supplied)

Charts shows how ncome has slowed for 30-somethings since the late 2010s.
Income has slowed for 30-somethings since the late 2010s.(Datawrapper )

Clementine looks through an album of childhood photos
Clementine feels like everything is on hold.(ABC News: Mridula Amin)

Chart showing how fewer GPs are bulk billing.
With fewer GPs bulk-billing patients, it's more expensive to go to the doctor.(Datawrapper)

Harry had a disability pension card but when he started working more, those discounts disappeared.(ABC News: Mridula Amin)

Dr Anna Sri poses in blue scrubs at work as a veterinarian, tending to animals
What bothers veterinarian Dr Anna Sri is that the politicians that have increased the burden of HECS repayments are mostly part of a generation who have never known what paying it feels like.(ABC News: Mridula Amin)

Chart shows HECS debt has to be repaid at lower income levels.
HECS debt repayments start being deducted before incomes reach the national average.(Datawrapper)

Dr Anna Sri smiles while petting a black dog in front of a coastal backdrop
Mark Warburton, from the Centre for the Study of Higher Education at the University of Melbourne says the threshold for [HECS] repayment is too harsh on people making a modest income.(ABC News: Mridula Amin)

Clementine stands before a grey scene of crashing waves as she walks alongside an ocean pool
Clementine thinks the system is broken.(ABC News: Mridula Amin)

Chart shows younger people are paying more in taxes.
Charts shows the generational difference for tax payers.(Datawrapper)

Photos of Harry in his yard, in one he's squatting down to feed some ducks
30-year-olds are feeling more cautious. Harry questions the cost of the Australian dream — and if it's worth it.(ABC News: Mridula Amin)

A house, just after sunset, with an Australian flag blowing in the wind.
For some 30-year-olds, the Australian dream seems further out of reach.(ABC News: Mridula Amin)

  • HECS: Data on HECS-HELP repayments is based on 2023 research by Mark Warburton of the University of Melbourne using data from the ABS (2021), ATO (2022) Norton, A. and Cherastidtham, I. (2016)
  • TAX: Net benefits for households 65+ include both cash and in-kind transfers minus taxes
  • TAX: Data for tax contributions is based on ABS 2019 analysis using ABS Government Benefits, Taxes and Household Income; ABS Australian Demographic Statistics; and ABS Population Projections
  • TAX: Projection of healthcare cost based on Productivity Commission estimates
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