Over one half of young adults in the United States are now living with their parents, but is this necessarily a bad thing?
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I just read an article on CNN that said over 52% of young adults in the US are living with their parents, and that it’s the highest it’s been since it was recorded through the census during the Great Depression in 1940.
Throughout all racial and ethnic groups in the age range of 18–29, there was an increase of about 9 percent, or a little over 3 million people moving home with their parents or grandparents compared to a year ago.
It doesn’t seem surprising though, when coupled with the fact that “40% of Americans don’t have $400 in the bank for emergency expenses”, even long before the quarantine measures started and the economy started taking a nosedive.
Reflecting on my own life, I am grateful that I was actually able to move back home with my parents last year shortly before turning 30. Coincidentally, it was a few months before the economy started taking a hit and I’ve since become very appreciative of my situation.
When attending university, the main priority for me was being able to have my own independence and space because I had been living at home until the age of 20. It just seemed like the mindset of my generation was that we needed to make it on our own and have our own place. I did everything I could to stay in the college town after attending university, and ended up living with roommates for a couple of years before trying to rent my own place.
Due to living in southern California, my rent expenses were anywhere from 30–40% of my monthly income, and it was higher when I decided to move on to live in a studio and 1 bedroom apartment. This was not including the utilities, internet, and other miscellaneous expenses that added up throughout the month. No wonder I wasn’t able to save up any money and was feeling poor even though I had a decent job! I also attribute not being able to save any money to poor financial knowledge, and ended up taking a Financial Planning class online at a community college.
As with any living situation, there are trade-offs and benefits to it all. However, I feel it has relieved a lot of the stressful elements of my life. I am able to spend more time with my aging parents and grandparent and it has allowed me to become more responsible with my money. I was able to get a job that was a shorter commute and reconnect with a lot of my childhood friends.
I do have plans to move back out once I have saved up enough to purchase a house, but I’m not in much of a hurry. I think it also has to do with the fact that I am in a different phase of my life now and have developed a more mature mindset.
For all those young adults that feel bad about moving back home, I would say try to appreciate the benefits. I’m sure a lot of the parents are also happy that they are able to see their children more often also for the time being. :)