Category Archives: Media appearances

Want to be in a documentary on adult children living at home?

A Canadian production company is working on a documentary looking at the implications of the global trend of adult children moving back into (or never leaving) their parents’ homes.  They will be looking at the issue from the perspective of the adult children and the parents, and  will be using real families in the documentary to talk about the issues. If you are interested in being considered for this documentary, or finding out more, send me an e-mail at christina@adultchildrenlivingathome.com and I will put you in touch with the producers.

Recent media appearances

AdultChildrenLivingatHome.com has been in the news a couple of times recently, offering tips for parents dealing with adult children returning home after college.

adult children living at home cover storyThe Ventura County Reporter’s story Boomerang Generation: From high hopes to grim realities, local adults, young and old, enter unknown territory included several tips from AdultChildrenLivingatHome, inclusing this one:

“Living with your adult kids can be a positive experience for both you and them, as long as you know how to make it work and are prepared to put in the effort,” Newberry said. She also warns against the danger of giving too much, which “may not be doing your adult children any favors” and could actually harm their chances of being successful in the future.

Yahoo! Shine’s piece How to make it work when college grads return home to live included this key piece of advice:

“If you treat them like a kid again, you’re not helping them — you are creating a lifestyle that they won’t be able to maintain when they leave,” Newberry says. “Your job is to get them to where they don’t need you anymore.”

Interview on Roy Green's Nationally Syndicated Show

Today I spoke with Roy Green on his Canada-wide talk show on the Corus Radio Network about how to deal with adult children living at home, including some important ways adult children must be treated differently from when they were little kids:

  • Don’t overparent your adult kids — it’s a sure way to encourage rebellion and resentment. You can have house rules, but you can’t rule your adult child’s life.
  • Don’t take care of all the details — your role has changed, and it’s no longer appropriate for you to pay your adult child’s bills, or do their laundry. Your role is to help your adult child achieve independence.
  • Talk, talk, talk. Your adult child should have much more input than they did when they were small, and discussions and agreements are important to achieving household harmony. That said, it’s still your house, so in the end, what you say goes.

You can hear the interview here.

How to set up a contract for adult kids returning home

In Australia, as in the rest of the world, adult children are living at home longer — and when they do leave, they’re quite likely to “boomerang” home within one to four years. In fact, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, 54% of 25- to 29-year-olds who live at home were out of the nest at some point, and 8% of 30- to 34-year-olds still live at home!

That prompted Murray Olds and Murray Wilson from Radio 2UE Sydney to give me a call this afternoon to talk about  rules for adult children living at home. I talked to them about the importance of creating a contract or living agreement for adult children moving home. They’ve got the whole interview (about 5 minutes) posted on their website, and you can check it out here.

How to Kick Your Kids Out of the Nest

I was quoted yesterday in a piece for CBS MoneyWatch on what to do when you adult kids move home — or just won’t leave. Here’s an excerpt from the article:

If you hope to ever get your kids out of the house, you need a plan in place before they move back. That plan should set a move-out deadline and define what they need to accomplish while they’re home, says Christina Newberry, co-author of The Hands-On Guide to Surviving Adult Children Living at Home. Newberry speaks from experience, having twice moved home to live with her parents in her 20s. She suggests families agree to a policy for everything from overnight guests to sharing the TV and the house computer. Do not baby your children, she warns. “If you treat them like a kid again, you’re not helping them — you are creating a lifestyle that they won’t be able to maintain when they leave,” she says. “Your job is to get them to where they don’t need you anymore.”

You can read the whole article here.

News story featuring AdultChildrenLivingatHome.com

We were quoted in a story in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram today about how the recession is bringing families together — for good or worse.

New grad, old room

The recession might be dealing out its leanest hand to new college graduates, who are checking out of dorms and back into their childhood bedrooms in droves.

In 2008, 77 percent of new grads moved back home, up from 67 percent in 2006, according to a poll by Collegegrad.com.

And prospects look even dimmer for 2009 graduates, says Christina Newberry, co-author of The Hands-on Guide to Surviving Adult Children Living at Home.

Newberry, 31, of Vancouver, British Columbia, has been there. She moved back in with parents twice after she graduated from college

“It’s a really hard thing to face, especially if you have been away at university or you have been away and you’ve had your job and you’ve had this independent life . . . and all of a sudden you’re back in the same bedroom you were in as a little kid,” she said.

You can read the whole article here.

Recent News Stories featuring AdultChildrenLivingatHome.com

This weekend, we were featured on News1130 Radio in Vancouver and in the Calgary Herald newspaper.

To listen to one of the clips from News1130 Radio, click here.

Our tips for the Calgary Herald article were for families who have new grads moving back home this summer. The key tips from the article are:

  • Establish ground rules prior to move-in. It may sound harsh, but some families find a contract can help formalize rules and keep everyone on the same page.
  • How will the kids contribute? They may not be able to afford market-value rent, but grown children should help offset the extra expenses they create (more money spent on food, higher phone bill, greater water consumption, etc.). Give them the heads up on what’s expected beforehand.
  • Don’t make living at home a dream come true. A university grad is capable of painting their room, doing their laundry and making their lunch. – Set a deadline for them to leave. Setting a timeline keeps everyone focused on the fact that eventually the young adult needs to become independent.
  • Stay calm. Planning the details of your kid’s return home can be stressful. Take some deep breaths and work on developing new communication techniques — they’ll come in handy.

You can read the whole article here.

Life with 'boomerang kids' can bring some conflicts

We were quoted in an article about adult children living at home in today’s Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:

“The communication part is so important,” says Christina Newberry, 31, of Vancouver, British Columbia, whose Web site, www.adultchildrenlivingathome.com, markets a $27.97 contract for parents and children that lists the ground rules in advance.

“Conversations are helpful, but it can be really difficult when you’re having a fight to remember exactly what you agreed to do or not do,” said Ms. Newberry. “Agreeing on the rules ahead of time is a really helpful way to make sure everyone is on the same page.”