The slow progress of the job market has forced many young people to move back home,

according to a widely reported study released last week.

The study, "During the Great Recession, More Young Adults Lived with Parents," [PDF]
from Ohio State University's Zhenchao Qian, examines why so many more young people are
living with their parents today than 30 years ago. Qian cites three main factors for the shift:
delay of marriage, economic fallout of the recession, and low educational attainment.
Nationwide, almost a quarter of adults ages 20-34 lived at home at some point between 2007
and 2009, compared to 17 percent in 1980, according to the study. The same stat for those
under 25 rose by 11 percentage points during the same time period.
The study argues that metro areas where low marriage rates, high unemployment rates, low
educational attainment and low median income prevail show a higher percentage of young
people living at home. The Bridgeport, Connecticut metro area is one such example. It boasts
the highest percentage of young people living at home (34 percent) thanks to its relatively
high rate of unemployment (8 percent) and low marriage rate (29 percent).
The size of the metro may also play a role. Large, expensive metros like New York and Los
Angeles had high concentrations of young adults living with their parents, 30 and 28 percent
respectively, during the 2007-2009 period. Conversely, many of the metros with lower
concentrations of young people living with their parents are also relatively small metros.
The table below (from the study) ranks the metro areas with the largest and smallest percent
of the young adult population that live at home.
Metropolitan Areas by Percent Living with Parents, among Young Adults Aged 25-29,
2007-2009

Rank
Top Ten
1
2
3
4
5

Metro Area

Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT
Honolulu, HI
McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach,
FL
New York-Northern New Jersey-Long
Island, NY-NJ-PA

Percentage of Young
Adults
Living with Parents
34
32
31
31
30

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6
7
8
9
10

Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, CA
El Paso, TX
Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, PA
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA

28
28
28
27
26

Bottom
Ten
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100

Provo-Orem, UT
Colorado Springs, CO
Oklahoma City, OK
Omaha-Council Bluffs, NE-IA
Columbus, OH
Madison, WI
Austin-Round Rock, TX
Boise City-Nampa, ID
Raleigh-Cary, NC
Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA

12
12
12
12
11
10
10
9
9
8

Table data courtesy of study, "During the Great Recession, More Young Adults Lived with Parents,"
by Zhenchao Qian

Top image: Hannamariah/Shutterstock.com

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Young_adult_%28psychology%29
http://www.investopedia.com/articles/pf/06/boomerangs.asp#axzz2Aw2po9KY

Early adulthood
According to Erikson, in the wake of the adolescent emphasis upon identity formation, 'the
young adult, emerging from the search for and insistence on identity, is eager and willing to
fuse his identity with that of others. He [or she] is ready for intimacy, that is, the capacity to
commit...to concrete affiliations and partnerships.'[20] To do so means the ability 'to face the
fear of ego loss in situations which call for self-abandon: in the solidarity of close affiliations,
in orgasms and sexual unions, in close friendships and in physical combat'.[21] Avoidance of
such experiences 'because of a fear of ego-loss may lead to a deep sense of isolation and
consequent self-absorption'.[21]
Where isolation is avoided, the young adult may find instead that 'satisfactory sex
relations...in some way take the edge off the hostilities and potential rages caused by the
oppositeness of male and female, of fact and fancy, of love and hate';[22] and may grow into
the ability to exchange intimacy, love and compassion.
In modern societies, young adults in their late teens and early 20's encounter a number of
issues as they finish school and begin to hold full-time jobs and take on other responsibilities
of adulthood; and 'the young adult is usually preoccupied with self-growth in the context of
society and relationships with others.'[23] The danger is that in 'the second era, Early
Adulthood...we must make crucially important choices regarding marriage, family, work, and
lifestyle before we have the maturity or life experience to choose wisely.'[24]
While 'young adulthood is filled with avid quests for intimate relationships and other major
commitments involving career and life goals', there is also "a parallel pursuit for the
formulation of a set of moral values".[25] Erikson has argued that it is only now that what he
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Young_adult_%28psychology%29
http://www.investopedia.com/articles/pf/06/boomerangs.asp#axzz2Aw2po9KY

calls the 'ideological mind' of adolescence gives way to 'that ethical sense which is the mark
of the adult.'[26]
Why Some Kids Never Leave The Nest
July 30 2012| Filed Under Budgeting, Retirement, Savings
It's an international phenomenon: the kids that won't go away. The Italians call
them "mammon", or "mama's boys". The Japanese call them "parasaito
shinguru", or "parasite singles". In the United States they are known as
"boomerangs", and in the U.K. they are called "KIPPERS", which is short for "kids
in parents' pockets eroding retirement savings". U.S. census data for the year
2011 showed that almost 20% of Americans between the ages of 25 to 34 were
living with their parents. For those aged 18 to 24, the number is 59% of men and
50% of women. Surveys in the United Kingdom and Japan suggest a similar
situation in those countries. In this article, we discuss some of the reasons why
kids may be living with their parents for longer periods of time and outline some
steps that parents can take to reduce the potential for negative effects - both for
their kids and for themselves.

The Benefits Of Staying Home

Growing up is not only tough, it is increasingly expensive. In the quest for a
rewarding career, many young adults opt for college after high school. Four years
later, they have school loans for amounts ranging from just over $15,000 for an
education from a public college or university to more than $31,000 for an
education from a private school, and that number is steadily increasing. Add on
the cost of a car, food, clothing, shelter and a social life, and suddenly one may
find him/herself digging out of personal debt. It is easy to see that moving back
in with mom and dad becomes a financially attractive option.
Aah! The benefits of home! Somebody else pays the bills, worries about the
mortgage, cuts the grass and - if a kid is really lucky - cooks, cleans and does the
laundry. It's like having a butler, a maid and a really rich uncle all rolled into one.
No stress, no bills to pay, no worries about the threat of unemployment, eviction,
and so on. What's not to like?
Often, if boomerang kids need money, they find that mom and dad are more
than willing to open up the checkbook. The kids only need to stick out a hand
and somebody will put a few bucks into it. To top it all off, everything that they
earn on their own can be used as discretionary income, and once they are
http://www.theatlanticcities.com/jobs-and-economy/2012/08/us-cities-whereyoung-adults-are-most-and-least-likely-live-home/2832/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Young_adult_%28psychology%29
http://www.investopedia.com/articles/pf/06/boomerangs.asp#axzz2Aw2po9KY

established, it's unlikely that their parents will kick them out. Living at home rent
free often means that a new car, designer clothes and a week in Mexico are
suddenly easy to afford, even on an entry-level salary.
What's A Parent To Do?
Clearly, moving back home has enormous and immediate advantages for the
kids, but it's not such a great deal for the parents and, in the long term, it may
not be good for the kids either. That KIPPERS moniker is an accurate depiction of
an ugly scenario. Some parents are too kind to kick out their still-dependent kids,
so instead of using their prime earning years to save and invest for retirement,
the parents are pouring their money into adult children who can't or won't strike
out on their own. Furthermore, in addition to jeopardizing mom and dad's
retirement, junior isn't learning a thing about the responsibilities that come with
being an adult.
You've heard the old saying: "Give a man a fish, you feed him for a day. Teach a
man to fish, you feed him for a lifetime." A similar concept applies to your adult
children. If you give them free room and board, you may be feeding them for a
lifetime, but they'll never learn to feed themselves. It's just one of the sad facts
of life that most folks will keep taking if you keep giving.
Set Rules!
If your adult kids want to come back home, or they won't leave, you need to lay
down the law. Teach them that there's no free lunch in life. Maintaining a
household is an expensive proposition, so everyone living under your roof needs
to carry his or her own weight by paying his or her fair share of the expenses.
This includes paying rent, paying utility bills and paying for food.
While the kids are chipping in to pay for telephone and cable service, the parents
need to make sure to keep their wallets closed. Your children need to pay their
own bills. This includes car payments, insurance, gasoline, credit cards and cell
phones. Kids need to learn that if they incur expenses, they are responsible for
paying them. This will surely teach a child the beauty of budgeting.
More Than Money
In addition to learning to pay their own way, your children need to understand
that households don't keep themselves up without some assistance. Everyone
living in the house needs to be responsible for keeping it clean and keeping it
maintained. Mowing the lawn, weeding the flower beds, painting the shutters
http://www.theatlanticcities.com/jobs-and-economy/2012/08/us-cities-whereyoung-adults-are-most-and-least-likely-live-home/2832/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Young_adult_%28psychology%29
http://www.investopedia.com/articles/pf/06/boomerangs.asp#axzz2Aw2po9KY

and cleaning the bathroom are par for the course when you own a home. If the
kids are living at home, they need to do their share of the work.
The Bottom Line
While there's no easy way to take a child to task, especially when that child is an
adult, tough love prepares kids for reality. Mom and dad won't be around forever
to tidy up the house and pay all of the bills. If the kids learn to manage their
money and maintain a household before they leave home, they (and you) will be
better off in the long run.

http://www.theatlanticcities.com/jobs-and-economy/2012/08/us-cities-whereyoung-adults-are-most-and-least-likely-live-home/2832/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Young_adult_%28psychology%29
http://www.investopedia.com/articles/pf/06/boomerangs.asp#axzz2Aw2po9KY