Wednesday, May 25, 2016

Living with Parents Now Most Common Status for 18-34 Year-Olds

The Pew Research Center has just released a report, announcing that "In 2014, for the first time in more than 130 years, adults ages 18 to 34 were slightly more likely to be living in their parents’ home than they were to be living with a spouse or partner in their own household" (link). When social scientists analyze large data sets -- in this case, several rounds of the once-a-decade U.S. Census plus recent versions of the American Community Survey -- it can take a few years for all the data to be processed and analyzed.

The 2014 breakdown of young adults' living arrangements, according to Pew, were as follows:

  • 32.1% living with parents
  • 31.6% living with spouse/partner
  • 22% living in miscellaneous arrangements, such as with grandparents, siblings, or in a college dormitory
  • 14% living alone (or as a single parent) or with roommates.

The overall trend is largely driven by men. By a margin of 35-28%, men in 2014 were more likely to live with parents than with a spouse/partner. In women, living in a marital/cohabiting relationship still exceeded residing with parents (35-29%).

Also, college-educated individuals are an exception to the trend. Young adults with a bachelor's degree were far more likely to be married or cohabiting (46%) than living with parents (19%). The 46% of college grads married or cohabiting in 2014, however, is a come-down from previous decades; in 1960, approximately 70% of college grads were married or cohabiting (mostly married, in all probability).

(Thanks to AZ for originally posting the link on Facebook.)

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