I have seen a good handful of articles around the blogsphere and major media outlets on how members of Generation Y are moving back in with their parents at some point following college. The “boomerang effect” as one article put it is thought to be a result of Generation Y struggling to find sustainable employment and/or that the generation is being somewhat lazy and looking for a free ride.
Well, I can say that I am a member of Generation Y and I moved back to my childhood home and in with my parents. While I believe these articles may be correct for some and lack sympathy for others (recession people), here are MY reasons.
I moved home for 3 primary reason:
1) The vicinity of my work to my parent’s house. Moving home allows me to have a much shorter commute to work.
2) To help me cut expenses to assist in my ‘fight to freedom’ from my debt.
and
3) Because my boyfriend Joe just moved across the country to New Orleans (hello regular airfare expense to visit him).
Why I’m Paying Rent:
Unlike the articles, I am not moving home for a free ride. My parents and I negotiated a rent that is below market rate and therefore beneficial for me as well as a rent payment for them. After paying for my every want and need for 20 some years, my parents have done their duty. And as a 20 something adult with a steady job, I am capable of paying for myself.
My parents are accepting me home with open arms. I look at my stay as an opportunity to spend some quality time with my family, especially since that time will become harder and harder to come by in the future.
When I transferred work sites with my first professional job, I moved back home because they lived only a 20 min drive by highway to my work. I got off easy and they refused to let me pay rent and groceries. I saved quite a bit of money living with them, but I didn’t become super duper frugal or super budget conscious until I moved out. I became even more budget conscious now that the bf and I are currently house hunting.