Young women living with parents, relatives at rate not seen since 1940, study finds

National Post ^ | November 11, 2015 | Sarah Skidmore Sell, AP

[rickmichaels]

The percentage of young women living at home with parents or relatives has risen to its highest level since 1940 as more millennial women put off marriage, attend college and face high living expenses.

A Pew Research Center analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data found that 36.4 per cent of women between the ages 18 and 34 lived with parents or relatives in 2014, the most since at least 1940, when 36.2 per cent lived with family.

It is a very different world for women now, though, despite the "return to the past, statistically speaking," says Richard Fry, a senior economist at Pew.

Fry says young women are staying home now because they are they are half as likely to be married as they were 1940 and much more likely to be college-educated. Other economic forces, such as increasing student debt, higher living costs and economic uncertainty, are also playing a role.

Casey Ballard was living away from home in Portland, Oregon, but rent ate up roughly two-thirds of her paycheque and she was ready for a career change. A September move back with family in California allowed her to try out teaching as a substitute and to pursue teaching full-time.

"There was that element of frustration and feeling like a failure," she says about returning home. "But then the logical side of me kicked in and said 'It's just fiscally responsible."'

[freedumb2003]

>>Declining wages and low paying jobs. It is hard to pay the rent and other bills even if you have a job.<<

Leftist claptrap.

I made it on my own in a then low-paying job (for the time). I did this thing called “budgeting” — el chapo beer, a few roomates when needed, homemade or garage sale furniture (ah, the venerable milk-crate shelving unit!).

This whole “there are no good paying jobs” meme is complete and total BS.

[kabar]

In the first quarter of 2014, there were 5.7 million part-time working-age natives without full-time work looking for it. While the number has declined some in recent years, it is still more than twice the number in the first quarter of 2000 and 40 percent above the 2007 number. These workers have varying degrees of education. Half a million of them are high school dropouts, more than two million have only a high school education, nearly two million have some college, and over a million have at least a bachelor's degree.

These 5.7 million part-time working-age natives looking for full-time work must be added to the 58 million working-age natives not working when discussing the enormous supply of unused or under-utilized labor in the United States. To this number can be added the 10.5 million working-age immigrants not working and 1.6 million immigrants working part-time who want full-time work. In total, there are nearly 76 million working-age people (immigrant and native) either not working or working part-time, but looking for full-time work. These figures are truly enormous and represent an increase of more than 24 million since 2000. All of these numbers fundamentally challenge the argument that there is a labor shortage in the United States that must be satisfied by bringing in additional immigrant workers as contemplated by S.744 and similar proposals.

[Grams A]

Young women remained with their parents in the 1940’s until they married because it was considered the proper thing to do and there were very few apartment buildings. Why don’t they buddy up with a friend or two and all share an apartment and expenses?

My kids each moved back home with us while they were working on their Master’s degrees but still worked part-time, paid a chunk of rent and helped with the maintenance and upkeep of the entire house. They didn’t stay long though. Parent’s should not be giving adult children a reduced or free ride for more than a few months.

[philman_36]

Other economic forces...

Fewer sugar daddies? {;^)

[fatnotlazy]

I left home when I was 21, and my parents were upset. They believed that a woman didn't leave home till she was married and I didn't marry. On the other hand, my brother lived with my parents till he married in his late 40s. To his credit, though, he wasn't a sloth living in my parents’ basement. He had a successful engineering career and paid many of my parents’ utility and other bills. Even after he married, he continued to support my mother who was by then a widow.

[kabar]

How old are you?

[freedumb2003]

I might have seemed a little harsh.

If the kid pays rent (perhaps a little bit less than going rate but close), utilities, groceries, helps consistently with chores, and follows the house rules (no other-sex overnights, no sex in the house at all), then it might make sense.

In some cases one kid will stay at home (with the above provisos) to help the parent(s) out. It isn’t the same as the point of the article.

[freedumb2003]

>>How old are you?<<

Looking retirement in the face but not close enough to grab it yet.

[PennsylvaniaMom]

Of our five (four boys, one girl) oldest three are out of college; two are married; all have great jobs. Number four is in his senior year of college (out of state, private school, specialty engineering) w/great job prospects (but will have student loan debt that he’ll have no issue paying off). He plans on living at home for a couple years (if he gets hired locally) to pay off loans. The youngest is commuting to a local state school (saving two years room&board).

With older kids, finances and our health and finances were different. We were a “safety net” that was never needed. Now, between finances, maintenance (like grass cutting, shoveling snow) we couldn’t keep our house (husband has heart problems/diabetic neuropathy and can’t do much w/upkeep and took a no travel job-lesser paying job). If our other son moves back in after graduation, we’ll keep our house a little longer (his “rent” will help us) If not, life changes for us all.

Life expectations, at least for us (and others I know in my area) don’t always turn out as planned and “absolutes” aren’t so absolute.

[Pete from Shawnee Mission]

Children are different. Depending on the emotional age and makeup and age of your child it might be better to live at home for a while.

Middle daughter left at 17, the middle of her senior year of high school, worked a year, enrolled in college, worked her butt off, went to France for a year to study, came home, graduated, and has a job.

Youngest daughter is still at home while she works and goes to college. The older one is self confident and assertive, the younger is shy and needs additional emotional support, so we have no problem with her staying at home. She is probably my wife’s best friend. If she needs more time we are happy to give it to her.

[gaijin]

1. Low job prospects, thanks Obama

2. Many guys now fully informed about marriage risks, thanks feminism

[Dr. Sivana]

My personal thinking may be old school, but there is nothing incompatible with a grown woman living at home with her parents until she is married.

The men are going to have to be the providers, so yes, they should go out and prepare to make a living. Women are more inclined to be responsible even with a safety net. The kind of guys who are scared off by a young woman living at home with her parents are probably not suitable men to be courting anyway.

This doesn’t mean a grown daughter cannot contribute to the household, it just means that she isn’t going to be kicked out to make a man of her.

[luckystarmom]

The 19 year old has a brain injury and she is on anti-seizure meds. She doesn’t have her driver’s license (having a hard time learning to drive).

She’s smart and had a 4.0 from a top private high school, but she thought dealing with dorm life and academics would be too much.

Lots of kids with epilepsy have relapses in college, and she is trying to avoid that.

Her high school teachers and my husband and I think she is making a very mature decision.

It’s the happiest I’ve ever seen her! She never had time for a social life in high school. She was always too tired from school and homework. Now, she’s getting very active in church college groups. She’s making lots of friends (without the help of her twin sister).

Since my 21 year old hates his major, I wish he would have gone to community college and worked. It would have been cheaper and helped him grow up. He was the most independent of my kids in junior high and high school, and he’s kind of floundered in college (mainly since the suicide incident last semester). Not sure why. We are in California and he’s in Texas. Hard to be a helicopter parent, but kind of worried about him. He’s never flunked classes until last semester and he’s not doing drugs.

My other daughter who was very dramatic and needy in high school is really stepping it up in college. She picked the best scholarship. She’s got a 4.0 and she’s applying to be an RA to get her room paid for. I was really worried about her going far away for college, but she’s soaring.

[Bigg Red]

+1

[Bigg Red]

Wonderful. Sounds like you are doing it right. God bless.

[Bigg Red]

Agreed.

You brought back memories for me. It was tough putting myself through college, but I was proud of myself for it.

[Mastador1]

I guess the economy so so bad that there aren’t enough employed men to pay for the shack up.

[Grams A]

I knew what you meant. My daughter moved back in with me for a couple of years to help with my recovery from a very serious auto accident. There are exceptions. But way too many parents don’t believe in tough love and raising their kids to be independent, responsible adults.

When my kids graduated from high school they were offered two choices: Go to college full time to develop a skill set, make at least a B average and work part-time or get a full-time job and your own apartment. No brainer for them. They went off to college and worked to put themselves through. Turned out great for everybody.

[Soul of the South]

One of the concerns I hear expressed by parents of responsible and virtuous young women is safety. The federal government is using the Section 8 program for social engineering purposes. As a result, many apartment complexes are simply not safe for a young single woman. The true rate of assaults, rapes, and break-ins in apartment complexes are not reported by the press.

Parents are letting responsible unmarried daughters live at home to provide them a safe home until they get married or save enough money to buy a home or condo in a safe neighborhood. When the true rate of inflation is running 7-8% on essentials (food, medical care, transportation, utilities) and wage increases are 1-2%, it is difficult for a young person in entry level positions to cover expenses much less save.

[eyedigress]

These were my options back in the day but this communist culture that is overtaking freedom is a trip.

Children today never grow out of it. There will be few adults in 15 years.