Special Report, Part 4: Mulling Millennials
From scary moments and how things really don't change much to cellphones and selfie sticks, here are four trends we learned at our Atlanta Millennial Revolution event last week.
THE MORE THINGS CHANGE...
Do youths today like living inside the city limits of Atlanta? Some 14% of 25 to 34-year-olds in metro Atlanta certainly do. But Paces Properties' George Banks offered this caveat: that ratio has been the same in the '90s, in the '80s, in the '70s, etc. “Young people have lived intown a long time, and it has been that way,” George says. Which means, in his mind, Millennials will eventually flock back to the suburbs, as every previous generation of youngsters has eventually done.
MILLENNIALS AREN'T NEEDY, THEY'RE DRIVEN
PMRG's Zach Wooten says passion in work is an important driver for Millennials. But don't mistake that for a lack of desire to rise to the top of an organization. “While we maybe don't have a corner office now, that doesn't mean we don't strive for that,” Zach says. Millennials want to feel part of an organization. “You can call that coddled or spoiled or needy. Honestly, I think it's just entrepreneurial drive.”
Zach and George were among a panel of Millennials who took a selfie, which included Eastdil Secured's William Ross, Cushman & Wakefield's Laura Power and Transwestern's Reeves Henritze. George—there in the back—is, of course, a Gen Xer and has never heard of a selfie before.
Reeves echoes a desire by Millennials to rise in the ranks and “aspire for a corner office.” But the current open office movement in companies—no cubes and few private offices—could have an unintended consequence. “Be careful on how far we go with this trend because it's going to age office space,” Reeves says. George agrees, saying open floor plans were actually common in the 1950s, and it led directly to the creation of the cubical in the 1960s. “So there's nothing new under the sun,” he says.
KIDS: MILLENNIAL'S 'SCARY MOMENT'
In many of his intown apartments, George says he sees Millennials “have that scary moment” when they have children: Where will they send those kids to school? It's an issue that Millennials will have to face one day, Laura (pictured) says. “I don't think that in 10 years, you won't see some of us relocating” back to the suburbs. Still, other panelists were insistent that moving outside the Perimeter was out of the question: Reeves says she learned her lesson from her parents, who'd commute 45 minutes each way. “Maybe that's because I'm a Millennial, but maybe it's also because I think traffic is a nightmare.”
TRUE STEREOTYPES
We learned that a few of those Millennial stereotypes are true. Laura confessed to owning a selfie stick. Reeves says she's “totally addicted” to her smartphone, even sleeping with it in her bed. Yes, most Millennials rent versus owning, but that may be due to a lack of ability to get home loans due to a boatload of student debt. Maybe if there is one misconception it's that most Millennials do own and use cars. Or as William (here) put it, “I do not own a bike, and I do not bike all around Atlanta to get [to work].”
