For many recent college graduates and twenty-somethings, stepping back over the “Welcome” mat at their parents’ homes rather than throwing their own housewarming parties has become a more and more prevalent reality.  In the United States, 15.8 million adult children currently live with their parents, forgoing complete independence for practicality’s sake.

Nancy Anderson, CFP and contributing personal finance writer at Forbes suggests that we embrace this restructuring of family living in order to foster mutually beneficial financial situations and less burdensome lifestyles in general.

The economic recession has made matters difficult for both Baby Boomers and their children.  The unemployment rate for 25-34 year olds is 8.2% nationally, and the percentage of “underemployed” workers is even higher in some states.  Baby Boomers have been forced to delay retirement, with home equity falling and inflation making saving more difficult.

Parents, Anderson says, shouldn’t drain their finances in order to support their grown children, but rather, should think about cultivating “interdependence” between family members.  This concept harkens back to living arrangements that have existed for thousands of years, where multi-generational families live under one roof in support of one another.

While adult children can use their time back home to save money or pursue unpaid internships that will ultimately lead to better careers, parents can rest assured that their investment in their offspring will save money in the future.  By helping their children save and jumpstart their careers, parents can take a preventative stab at avoiding having to pay for emergency expenses later, down payments on homes, and so forth.

But your adult children can also help you: by renting space to your twenty-something sons and daughters trying to establish themselves for even half the amount of median rent prices in the States can earn you hundreds of dollars towards retirement savings every month.

There’s no reason to say that living arrangements between boomerang kids and their parents should be short-lived solutions, either, according to Anderson.  While it may undermine the American dream of independence, it also creates an environment of shared stresses, meaning less strain all around.  Duties like childrearing, pet sitting, paying the mortgage, housekeeping, and so forth become less of an encumbrance with more support.  Housing trends like in-law suites support this possibility, while still providing plenty of personal space to make the agreement optimal.

Baby Boomers can make retirement simpler for themselves and their children can work towards building their careers and finances with shared living arrangements.  The eased financial strain will likewise create an ease of living that comes with being anxiety-free when it comes to money.

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Boomerang Children Living At Home May Not Be Such a Bad Thing