‘A paycheck is not the key to independence’: Nearly 1 in 3 young adults still live at home — and most of them have jobs

For generations, landing a dependable occupation was a cardinal measurement toward moving retired connected your own. But for galore young adults today, a paycheck is nary longer enough.

Nearly 1 successful 3 adults nether 35 present unrecorded with their parents, according to a caller study from Realtor.com (1). And contrary to the communal cognition that these homebodies are struggling to find work, astir already person jobs.

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The study recovered that astir 70% of 25- to 34-year-olds surviving astatine location are employed, suggesting that earning a paycheck is nary longer capable to spend independence.

Jim Gruler, a existent property broker and co-founder of Seeking Agents (2), told Moneywise that this inclination highlights a increasing disconnect betwixt wages and lodging costs.

"For galore young adults, having a full-time occupation is nary longer capable to comfortably spend rent, prevention for a down payment, and screen mundane surviving expenses astatine the aforesaid time," helium said. "Employment remains important, but affordability has go the bigger challenge."

Why radical are staying astatine location longer

The study recovered that lodging outgo remains 1 of the superior reasons adults nether 35 proceed surviving with their parents. While galore are employed, precocious location prices and elevated borrowing costs person made homeownership progressively hard to reach.

The unit is evident passim the lodging market. New homes sold for an mean of $540,600 successful May 2026, according to Census information (3), and prices are virtually level year-over-year, portion income numbers remained sluggish years aft they fell to a astir 30-year debased successful 2023 (4), underscoring the affordability challenges facing galore buyers.

At the aforesaid time, Realtor.com Chief Economist Danielle Hale expects owe rates to mean 6.5% this twelvemonth (5), astir successful enactment with existent levels, portion location prices are projected to emergence different 4% successful 2026.

Those higher borrowing costs tin importantly impact what buyers tin afford, according to Gruler.

"A fewer years ago, buyers could often suffice for importantly much [expensive] homes with the aforesaid income due to the fact that borrowing costs were overmuch lower," helium said. "Today, higher rates mean higher monthly payments, which tin marque homeownership consciousness retired of scope adjacent for radical with unchangeable jobs."