Surging living costs and skyrocketing rents are forcing a growing number of adults across the UK and US to move back in with their families, while millions of older parents shoulder financial support well into adulthood, according to recent reports from NPR and Bigissue.
Economic pressures are fundamentally reshaping domestic life as soaring expenses for essentials alter the path to adulthood. Families are increasingly absorbing adult children who find themselves priced out of independence, turning multi-generational living arrangements into a primary strategy for financial survival.
Mabel and Tom Lago Adjust Retirement for Adult Sons
When Mabel and Tom Lago planned their retirement move from New Jersey to South Carolina, their budgeting accounted for more than just two people. They built a 1,500-square-foot retirement home designed with an extra bedroom for their 39-year-old son, who could not afford to live on his own.
The Lago family’s situation illustrates a widening trend. While the couple’s younger son worked a steady job helping to manage a liquor store, low wages, a lack of benefits, and costly health needs—including Type 1 diabetes insurance running nearly a thousand dollars a month—kept independent living out of reach. The young people have really been shafted, big time, with the economy, with the cost of living,
Mabel Lago said, as reported by NPR.
The family also assisted their older son, 43, by giving him a portion of their land and inheritance money to help him build a house next door because he could not purchase a home on a single income. To manage rising gas and food prices, the retired couple has cut back on driving and stopped eating beef, adapting their own golden years to support their adult children.
Rising Rents and the Boomerang Generation in London and Cornwall
In the UK, soaring rental markets are driving similar domestic adjustments. Isaac Izekor moved back in with his family in London in 2017 after leaving his medical degree to stabilize his mental health and financial footing. Bigissue noted that while moving home reduced his independence, it removed the crushing anxiety of rent while the stress of rent doesn’t hang over my head.
Similar pressures pushed Mary Kim and her partner into her parents’ home in Cornwall. After their landlord raised the rent twice within six months, the couple found themselves priced out despite working well-paying jobs. According to Bigissue, private rents in England increased by 5.1% since June 2022, alongside a 5.8% rise in Wales and a 5.5% jump in Scotland. Rightmove data places the national average asking rent at a record £1,190 a month, with London prices surpassing £2,500 a month for the first time.
Broader Financial Pressures on Parents and Retirement Security
Research underscores how widespread this financial reliance has become. According to NPR, the share of 25- to 34-year-olds living with parents has nearly doubled since 2005, reaching about 20% according to the Urban Institute. An AARP survey found that 75% of parents help support adult children across various income levels, providing an average of $7,000 a year for expenses like cellphones, transportation, and rent.
Rachel Minkin, a researcher at the Pew Research Center, noted that young adults are kind of coming of age in a different economic landscape than their parents did. A Pew survey revealed that 80% of Americans agree it is harder for young adults today to cover basic expenses.
Experts warn that this ongoing support carries long-term risks. Richard Johnson, who leads a financial security policy team at AARP, cautioned that when families divert scarce resources to help children, it jeopardizes their own financial futures and delays retirement. Wealth manager Nate Kinzinger has observed clients delaying retirement in part to continue supporting adult children.
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