Erin Connolly and Joseph Wenzel IV
According to a new study, for the first time in modern times, shows more millennials are choosing to live at home with their parents than any other arrangement.
Eyewitness News took a closer look at the reasons behind this growing trend.
“I’ve left and come back quite a few times, but they always take me back with open arms,” 27-year-old Linley Seip, of Wethersfield, said.
Seip said she has tried to move out of her parents’ home, but after college, finding a full-time job that paid well was a struggle. And Seip said she’s not alone.
“Surprisingly, I would say half of my friends live at home and they’re the same age, if not a few years older,” Seip said.
The so-called “new reality” is echoed in a recent study by the Pew Research Center. Nearly one-third of millenials, adults ages 18 to 34, now live with their parents.
In fact, for the first time in more than 130 years, millennials are less likely to be living with a spouse or partner in their own household.
“I think it’s a little more common now to stay at home as long as possible with your parents, to just save money to buy a house or to avoid paying rent,” Seip said.
“I’ve been living with my mom since I was born,” 24-year-old Tori Smith said laughing.
Smith, her boyfriend 26-year-old Alan Martin and their baby Grace live with her parents. They said the three bedroom house is tight for six people, but they save money on rent and always have someone to babysit.
Millennials are having an even tougher time to live on their own because Connecticut is the seventh most expensive state to live in the United States, according to a research group in Missouri.
“I’m so grateful for the opportunity has been here because we probably would have fallen on our face right away,” Martin said.
Eyewitness News looked into why millennials are in less of a rush to leave their bedrooms at home. The study cites a few reasons, including weak job opportunities, as well as falling wages from the great recession and modest recovery. Lastly, many are choosing to get married later or not at all.
Something that resonates with Seip and Smith and Martin.
“Personally, I don’t want to get married until I’m debt free so that’s the goal,” Seip said.
“As long as we’re together and happy as a family, getting married doesn’t really matter,” Smith said.
When it’s broken down into racial and ethnic groups, 36 percent of African American millennials lived with their parents in 2014, which was similar to Hispanics. By comparison, that number is just 30 percent for whites.
While millennials said the benefits are clear, there are downsides.
“I would say the biggest challenge is just trying to get along with my parents all the time,” Seip said.
“Our stuff is just crammed in random little places in our room and her closet,” Smith said.
If you’d like to take a look at the entire study, click here.
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