A report published in the UK by housing charity Shelter shows that 1.7 million people aged 20 to 40 are living with their parents because they can’t afford their own home. What’s worse is that 40% of the parents in these homes think their children will never — ever — be able to afford their own home.

Parents are taking a financial hit, too. Forty percent are buying their kids’ groceries, and 20% say they have less money to spend on themselves.

“Money Matters With Jean Chatzky,” a TV show on RL-TV, is doing a story on boomerang kids. They are looking for parents in the NYC tri-state area who would like to discuss their experience  having their child move back in with them — the good, the bad, the ugly — on camera. If you think you fit the description, please e-mail the producer at Seth.Goldman@NBCuni.com.

I am a firm believer that parents should never, ever, ever (is that clear enough) take on debt to support their adult children. It does not make financial sense for a generation nearing the end of its earning years to take on debt to support a generation with a full working life ahead.

That said, I know that some parents don’t heed this advice. They DO take on debt to support their adult kids, and they may find themselves in way over their heads.

If this has happened to you, you need to get your financial situation sorted out. John Skiba of Skiba Law Group has written an article explaining how to proceed with bankruptcy if you find yourself in this situation. You can find his information here.

W Network’s new reality show “The Audience” is looking for adult children living at home (or their parents) who are at a crossroads and need some advice. They’re also looking for people who would like to provide crowd-sourced advice. Here are the casting call details and contact information straight from the producers:

Force Four Entertainment is launching a groundbreaking new television series called “The Audience”, based on the popular UK show.  “The Audience” is looking for people who are struggling with a life-changing decision, are at some sort of crossroads and in need of some thoughtful advice.  We would like to find an adult who is thinking about moving back in with their parents, or the opposite, that is trying to decide whether to move out of the family home.  We would also like to speak to parents who have some sort of dilemma with their adult child living at home.

Here are a few more details about “The Audience”:  This W Network show draws on the “wisdom of the crowd” – how sometimes many minds can be better than one when it comes to solving a life-changing dilemma.  For one week, the “person with a dilemma” is followed by 50 insightful people from diverse backgrounds who will ask the tough questions that will get to the root of the dilemma and then provide valuable advice and a possible solution.

We are also looking for participants who might be interested in being part of the group of 50 advisors.

If you have a dilemma or are interested in finding out more information about the series, please email: linda@forcefour.com or call 604 669 4424 x148.

Wowza. I just read an article from The Winnipeg Free Press that begins with the following paragraph:

Accumulating statistics show today’s mollycoddled kids prefer the comforting velvet-cushion homespun pampering of the parental home to the cold realities of independent living. Life on a silver platter sharing the parental home is the option of choice for young people facing uncertain economic times.

I think the author has some negative feelings about adult children living at home! The truth is, some adult children living at home ARE mollycoddled. They live at home with no expectation of contributing to the cost of their stay there, they come and go as they please with no responsibilities, are fed and clothed, and may even have their laundry done for them. Sure, this is life on a silver platter. But it’s also not the only way.

If an adult child moves home for a defined period of time to allow him or her to achieve a specific goal (find a job, pay off debt, complete school, etc.), contributes financially to the household, and behaves according to the parents’ expectations in the home, it provides that young adult a huge advantage in what has become a very financially challenging world without creating ongoing dependency or mollycoddling. The key is to set a timeline for the stay and expectations for behavior and contributions (financial or otherwise), and to expect the adult child to take care of his or her own household responsibilities (keeping things clean, making meals, and so on). When the stay is managed intelligently, it can actually be a positive for both adult children (who get obvious financial and emotional benefits) and parents, who get to know their children as adults in a way we often don’t make time for in our culture.

I was excited to be part of a panel discussion on adult children living at home on HuffPost Live this morning. It was an interesting conversation covering many views on the subject.

Here are a couple of pictures from the broadcast:

You can watch the whole segment at http://live.huffingtonpost.com/r/segment/5034e6d8fe34445b9d0006ed

Here’s something a little different: Carolyn Plath, a dream analyzer with Examiner.com, recently analyzed a dream that involved a run-down nag rummaging in the dreamer’s refrigerator. The dreamer gives the horse a swift kick, but it falls into the fridge and clumsily tries to make its way out. Plath’s analysis? The horse represents the dreamer’s adult child living at home, and the imagery symbolizes her difficulty getting that child motivated. You can see the full description of the dream and Plath’s full analysis here.