Is living at home a good financial strategy?

Here’s an interesting blog post from a twentysomething who argues that living at home is not a way to mooch off of mom and dad, but a sound financial strategy. Here’s a short quote:

More and more adult children are moving back home, and not so they can spend all day watching porn in their basement-cum-living-quarters while Mom does their laundry and brings them PBJ sandwiches all day long. Most these days have jobs, have financial obligations they are meeting, and are contributing financially and/or in terms of responsibilities in their parents’ home. Some parents even say it’s given them a financial break. Also, many families cite that it has fostered closer inter-generational relationships and that they feel like they appreciate and respect one another more for the experience.

Does this match up to the experience you’re having with your adult children living at home? you may need some tips to help get things back on track. You can learn some useful planning and communications strategies in my eBook: The Hands-On Guide to Surviving Adult Chldren Living at Home.

Are your kids graduating college this year? Plan ahead for a smooth transition home.

We posted a new article on our site today, all about how you can plan ahead to make sure your new grad’s return to the nest is a smooth one. Here are some tips from the article:

  • Establish ground rules now: Some families with adult children living at home find a contract can help formalize the rules and keep everyone on the same page.
  • Decide ahead of time how they will contribute: They may not be able to afford market-value rent, but adult children living at home should help make a dent in the extra expenses they create (extra gas, higher phone bill, etc.). Make sure this is clear before they start packing up the dorm.
  • Don’t help too much: A college grad is capable of painting their room and planning their own move. Don’t take care of all the details or you’ll find yourself doing laundry and making lunches once they’re home.
  • Set a deadline for them to leave: Though it may sound harsh, setting a time limit ahead of time helps keep everyone focused on the fact that eventually the new grad needs to establish their independence.
  • Above all: Stay calm! Planning the details of your new grad’s return to the nest can be stressful, but anger isn’t helpful. Try a time out, or work on developing new communication techniques – they’ll come in handy once you’re all sharing a home.

You can read the rest of the article here.

New college grads having a tough time finding jobs

With unemployment rising sharply just as this year’s class of graduates is coming to the end of their education, people are starting to wonder just what will happen to the class of 2009.

The young graduates themselves seem terrified, with a huge portion of them planning to move home because there’s no other way they can see themselves making rent.

Here are some thoughts from college seniors from a recent article at NewsDaily.com:

“You’re graduating into this world and being thrown out of the college bubble and you’re supposed to be able to get a job, which just doesn’t exist.

“Most people I know my age still live at home because they can’t even get it together to make enough money to pay rent. Each class piles up against the ones before it. I know so many people who are looking for jobs, and have been since they graduated. There’s this sense of ‘No hope.'”
– Andrew Heber, 24, class of  2007

“People are saying this is the worst year to graduate, ever.”
– Amanda Haimes, 22, class of 2009

If you have an adult child who is set to graduate this Spring, now’s the time to start the conversation about future living arrangements. Some new graduates may assume they’re moving home to live with Mom and Dad, even if they haven’t let you in on the plan. Talk to them now about what their plans are, and what your expectations are if they do return to the nest.

Interesting online discussion about adult children living at home

There is an interesting online discussion about adult children living at home happening here. The questions up for discussion are:

Do you live in culture where it would be considered inappropriate to move out of the family home before you are married? Are you a parent who feels you have brought up your children to the best of your ability and now its time for you start enjoying life as a couple again? or are you a twenty something desperate to strike out on your own but constrained by the cost of it?

More stories of adult children living at home

We keep hearing more and more stories of adult children living at home as the economy worsens and more people lose jobs and can’t afford their housing costs.

This recent article from the LA Times shares a few of those stories.

This growing trend can be really tough on families, as the article reveals. For help with the challenges of dealing with extra people living in your home, visit www.adultchildrenlivingathome.com.

Decor tips for adult children living at home

Returning to a childhood room that still looks like a childhood room can be hard on the self-esteem of adult children who move back home. There are ways to decorate an adult child’s room that maximize investment in pieces for future use, and minimize impact on the parents’ home after they leave. This article provides some tips on how to make the decor of an adult child’s room work or everyone in the home.

Admitting to living at home on a first date may reveal your date does too!

This recent article from the Philadelphia Inquirer profiles a couple of twenty-somethings who were both afraid to reveal that they lived with their parents on their first date. It turned out, of course, that like many of their peers they were both living at home.

It makes for interesting dating scenarios, like this one:

There is also the privacy issue. When [Mike] and [Kelly] cozy up to watch a movie on the weekends, a parent might walk through the TV room. They tell their parents of their whereabouts when going out, something they’d never have to do living on their own. And that spare bedroom in [Mike’s] family’s trilevel in Cherry Hill? That’s where [Kelly] sleeps. “At least, to the best of my knowledge that’s where she sleeps when she comes here,” says Barbara Englisch, Mike’s mother.

Sleepovers are one contentious issue (of many) when adult children live at home. It’s important for all of these issues to be sorted out ahead of time to keep all family members happy with the living arrangement. We explain how to decide what works best for your family at www.adultchildrenlivingathome.com.

Adult Children Living at Home in the media

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