Almost a fifth of adults aged 24-34, so born between 1991 and 2001, are living with parents, particularly in areas of high-cost housing, it has been warned. Young men are more likely to live with their parents than young women, although researchers could offer no explanation for this.
The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) said an estimated 1.7 million adults in the UK aged 24-34 are living with parents, almost 20 per cnent of the total cohort and an increase of 450,000 since 2006, when 13 per cent of this age group lived at home.
Of parents who live with their young adult children, nearly two-thirds own their own home, while 25 per cent are in social housing. Young adults living in London might expect their stay in the parental home to save them about £1,000 a month on rent, compared with the national average of £560 a month, and £340 for young adults in Wales.
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Almost half of 25- to 34-year-olds in the bottom fifth by income are living at a parental home, compared with just 2% of those in the top income quintile. Co-residence can be seen as a transfer from parents to their adult children, allowing these children to avoid paying full – or any – rent and potentially to save on other costs such as heating.
Bee Boileau, a research economist at the IFS and co-author of the report, said: “We should not ignore the inequalities that arise [from the hotel of mum and dad].” The IFS said similar increases had been identified in the US, Australia and Canada. UK rates were higher than those in Nordic countries and “significantly lower” than in southern European countries.
Lower rates of parenthood and marriage and increased reported experience of ill health among 25- to 34-year-olds have coincided with the increase in co-residence over the period. Since 2006, the proportion of 25- to 34-year-olds who are married has fallen sharply from 39% to 29%, and the proportion with a dependent child has fallen even more, from 45% to 33%.