Average age to move out in US and Europe

Anyone happen to know what age people are moving out of their parent's homes these days? I've heard it is quite late in life or, those who move out end up returning home. Something like 25 - 30 years old. Also, what reasons are there keeping young adults at home so much longer, and should people living at home longer feel unaccomplished and be looked down upon?

From 2010:


source

Wow, that is later than I thought in many cases.

I don't think it's as much about "keeping young adults at home" as it is "I can't get a job, because there are no jobs, so I have to live at mum and dad's"

Not sure about the statistics but I found out that, where I live, there is no mandatory age when they have to move out.

The Doors of Perception said:

Also, what reasons are there keeping young adults at home so much longer...

Click to expand...

I think there are several closely related reasons, but perhaps the biggest one has been the stagnation and/or decline in middle class incomes since the 1980s that has largely been brought about by gains in income from increasing productivity going to the top 1% wealthiest people in the country, rather than being more equitably distributed. The effect has been that many young people simply cannot find jobs that allow them to move out of their parent's house.

methylatedghosts said:

I don't think it's as much about "keeping young adults at home" as it is "I can't get a job, because there are no jobs, so I have to live at mum and dad's"

Click to expand...

Pretty much. The only reason I haven't moved back in with my folks is because I've been managing to scrape by with temp jobs over the past year. In spite of being a highly educated and qualified person, there just aren't that many openings in my field specifically. There are definitely positions open elsewhere, and I've reluctantly taken to looking for work in these related fields where they have money dripping out of their ears.

BSM1 said:

Not sure about the statistics but I found out that, where I live, there is no mandatory age when they have to move out.

Click to expand...

Does that surprise you? I don't see how the most totalitarian government in the world would figure that was any of their business.

The Doors of Perception said:

Anyone happen to know what age people are moving out of their parent's homes these days? I've heard it is quite late in life or, those who move out end up returning home. Something like 25 - 30 years old. Also, what reasons are there keeping young adults at home so much longer, and should people living at home longer feel unaccomplished and be looked down upon?

Click to expand...

Not sure what the average in the United States is. A poor economy plays a role, with the costs of education skyrocketing and students getting in debt.

I moved out at 18. I would have stayed longer if circumstances would have allowed it. I don't think it makes any sense to look down on people who live at home, considering that the nuclear family model is kind of new and odd to begin with. In earlier times, larger extended households were more common, and it's a more economical and sustainable arrangement anyway.

methylatedghosts said:

From 2010:

source

Click to expand...

It's pretty interesting that in every one of those countries without exception women move out earlier than men on average.

Storm said:

Does that surprise you? I don't see how the most totalitarian government in the world would figure that was any of their business.

Click to expand...

Click to expand...

I was being tongue-in-cheek. My oldest didn't move out until he was almost 28.

A co-worker of mine stayed at home for 2 years after he was employed after college.

He didn't have to, but he chose to, because with rent and utilities, he could save upwards of $1,000 per month. So after two years, that's $24,000, and allowed him to put all that money towards paying off his student loans.

He got his own apartment when he was debt-free.

Penumbra said:

It's pretty interesting that in every one of those countries without exception women move out earlier than men on average.

Click to expand...

Yeah, I'm wondering why that might be...

The economy is definitely the biggest factor. I think people are generally eager to move out of their parents' house as soon as they are ready, but not being able to find a decent job plays a major role in not moving out.

Couple that with the fact that most households nowadays require two incomes to survive, if you don't have a partner to help pay the bills, unless you have a great paying job, good luck in moving out. Also the lack of financial responsibility on the part of a lot of youth today.

Then you have sky-high rent prices (at least in much of Canada. I'm not sure about elsewhere in the world), and a high cost of living, it makes a lot of sense to continue living at home with your parents until you're financially ready.

The flipside is "Can parents afford to keep their kids at home for longer?" Unless you're paying rent to your parents, there is a financial burden on your parents in you remaining in their household for a long period of time.

I'm SO glad I was smart in high school. I got my first job as soon as I was of legal age to work. Instead of blowing my money on iPhones and iThis and iThat, I saved it all up and put it towards tuition. With a lot of hard work, I was able to pay for my tuition without having to go into even a single cent in debt. It helps tremendously.

Well my husband stayed at his dad after he finished university to save up money to put towards a house. He didn't have any uni debt so all his savings were put into the mortgage.

That allowed him to save up nearly £40k. He's already got over 1/4 of our house payed off and he's 26 yrs old.

There's certain advantages to stay at the parent(s) for a while instead of moving out ASAP. I think if it doesn't bother them it's a smart thing to do. My husband's dad made it clear if we ever need to stay at his, we can.

Im in my mid 20s and live with my parents. I don't see any reason to move out yet. I have financial security and I get along with them really well. It's a sweet deal.

Families do what is necessary to survive. If an adult child is saving for a down payment or paying off student debt, it really makes alot of sense.

Things are much different today than it was back when I was a young adult. I was too proud to live with my parents as an adult child. I would have lived under a bridge rather than come back home.

I had a steady job at the age of 16 and had my own money when I left home at 18. Things where different both economically and the general attitudes have changed.

Many young people would rather live comfortable with their parents than live a reduced life style on their own. Going to the laundry, not having cable or internet or a nice car is unacceptable to them.

Many parents are about to retire and may want to move and live in a smaller home. Many Parents may want to increase their savings right before retirement as well.

My biggest issue with my youngest is being wasteful in my home. Raising or lowering thermostats and running the washer with just one pair of jeans gets me upset. Blocking cars in the driveway is frustrating as well as when they do move out they think my home is a life time storage area for them.

I look forward to seeing how they deal with their own adult children in the future if I live that long.

I left home to Join the army at 17.5 for three years, then went to college. After I Joined up I only made short visits home. Lots like me did that in the early 50's. My Grand father Paid and supported me and my two brothers and two cousins to go through college and university. I might have still been on the family farm had he not. he was a typical victorian engineer industralist.

In the US it depends on ethnicity, education, and a lot of other factors. Hispanics and Asian-Americans tend to move out later, especially if they work for a family business. European-Americans tend to move out the earliest, right after college. I've known kids who manage to get emancipated by the courts and have moved out as early as 16.

BSM1 said:

I was being tongue-in-cheek. My oldest didn't move out until he was almost 28.

Click to expand...

Ah, sorry. Hard to tell sometimes.

Considering school can cost anywhere from 10's of thousands to hundreds of thousands of dollars..is it any surprise that kids can't afford to live on their own? With everybody walking around with atleast a bachelors degree, education is put highly in career outlook.

Its a lot harder to obtain a career that is as well paying, higher population..not as many jobs etc..etc.. There are too many variables to play into the scenario. Most of my colleagues have no choice but to live at home as schooling is nearly 30,000/yr. How can somebody pay bills while doing fulltime schooling? Its just not practical.