Back when the census was done in 2020, my two kids were in high school and college and living at home. Now, one is still in college and the other graduated in 2022 and lives in an apartment in L.A. She supports herself and her luxury handbag habit. She’s not saving for a downpayment, but she is contributing to both 401k and Roth IRA.
My GenX friends and I would’ve rather been homeless than move back in with our parents. I did not get along with either of them, to put it mildly. There was an incredible gap of understanding there.
Part of the “problem” with GenZ, I think, is that we’ve done such a good job of being their friends (and not growing up ourselves, at least in my case) that they are happy to spend more time with us. The generational divide is really not there.
I will add that I don’t think this is a bad thing. Plenty of time for them to be on their own.
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It is a balancing act. In Italy there is a concept called “Mamoni” where 35 yo men are still living at home with their Mom doing the laundry for them. I have heard of people here telling their 18 yo to go get a job and their own place. Seems like two major extremes to me.
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I’d be interested in how much this contributes to later marriage and grandchildren (either through fewer opportunities to get together with a prospective partner or through lesser incentives to move in together to save money on rent).
Maybe one cause of increased spending is the need to go out with a date rather than inviting them over to your parents’ house!
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I’ll put my youngest and his wife who lived at home with us during Covid against anyone you feel is functional due to having left the home.
Whether one leaves the house by a certain age or not has absolutely nothing to do with whether they turn out to be a functional adult (or not).
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Both of mine has been on their on for at least 10 years.
I left the house at 17 and I’m still not sure if I’m a functional adult…
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I’m still not an adult, let alone functional.
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Like many news articles, the comments are taken out of context and make things sounds more extreme than reality. The actual quote from the report is below. The author of the report believes that saving on rent by living at home increases discretionary spending, which is one factor that contributes to spending on luxury goods. Nobody mentions giving up on home ownerships, or suggests that spending on luxury goods is a large portion of budget.
If you look at BLS and other reports listing total spending on luxury goods, the averages are a near negligible portion of overall spending of persons less than 25. The largest average expense for this group is housing/rent, which is a completely different order of magnitude from spending on luxury goods.
As per US Census Bureau data, nearly half of young adults (defined as 18 to 29 years old) in the US are currently living with their parents, the highest on record since [chart above]. We believe that the trend benefits discretionary spending. When young adults free up their budget for daily necessities (e.g. rent and grocery), they simply have more disposable income to be allocated to discretionary spending. This is of course not the only reason luxury goods consumers are getting younger in the West (social media playing also an important part) but we see it as fundamentally positive for the industry.
Rather than luxury goods spending, I find it more interesting that nearly half of young adults are still living with parents. I suppose 18-29 is a broad range. This includes 18 year olds living at home while attending college, as well as 29 year olds who have been adults living at home for 10 years. Other sources have suggested ~60% of 18-24 and ~30% of 25-29 live with parents or other adult relatives. Both are gradually increasing, with increasing trends beginning before COVID.
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My daughter went for the house. Her regret (a small one) is where the house is, deep in the suburbs. She thinks they should have paid more to live in the city. She really wanted a mid-century modern but those were about $200k more than she wanted to pay. They’ve had fun fixing up the house.
Her ‘adult’ decision was not to buy the car for $35k. Instead, she drive’s her boyfriend’s grandmother’s 2009 Malibu with 70,000 miles on it (thanks granny) It’s the car they drove in college.
I really think what they’ll do next is buy a condo in a ski town and maybe rent it out half time and use it half time. Last weekend they rented an Airb&B with friends and this weekend they are staying at my brother’s house to go skiing. They don’t spend that much for these weekends.
I think we’re back to the DINK generation and they are able to do both - buy a house and still have plenty of money for luxuries too. Vacations, skiing, Peloton bikes, gym memberships, concerts.
My nephew and his girlfriend, both engineers, also bought a house last year and have a luxury dog. Also big on the wedding circuit, being in them and traveling to them; next year two in Europe. I know she got Taylor Swift tickets and I didn’t even ask her how much they cost. They, too, drive her grandmother’s old car. They save on some things and splurge on others, but yes, they don’t have to scrimp and save for one vacation a year like I had to.
Both couples have a sibling living in their houses, paying rent. They use their ‘college’ dishes and furniture, they drive older cars (and share), are minimalists so don’t buy a lot of things for the houses (just for the dogs) and pay their share for family vacations. I know they are all socking away the max in retirement accounts.
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My kids spend money on Taco Bell and used clothes. Do those count as luxuries?
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What is a “luxury dog”?
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In this case, it is an Irish-doodle (Irish setter and poodle mix). They were on the waiting list for a long time to get the exact dog they wanted. My daughter has two goldens, one cream and the other light golden (mixed with cream). Two very very spoiled dogs.
This topic is about luxury items that young adults spend their money on, and I think the dogs fall into that category. The cost enough.
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Hmmm, I ate at Taco Bell and bought work clothes at the Goodwill just last week. And went to a job interview wearing a fully thrifted outfit including shoes. I’ve eaten celebration dinners of all types at Taco Bell (including bday and anniversary).
Spouse and I are Gen X and still paying off our student loans. Spouse is currently agonizing over whether to buy a $1500 car or really splurge for the $2500 car. Don’t go to grad school, kids. At least we have good home equity and are looking to downsize to no mortgage soon. Then we’ll be able to afford some of the luxuries of people’s kids in this thread, LOL. I’m mostly kidding. We’ll still eat at Taco Bell and shop secondhand even when our house is paid off. We’ll never shake some of the thrifty shopping habits from when we were on WIC. And Taco Bell is delicious!
I don’t know if we’ll have room for the kids to move back in once we downsize. They’ll be welcome in any space we have, though it might not be enticing.
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I guess our dog: a chihuahua/miniature pinscher mix we got from an animal shelter is not a luxury dog 
. Well, he does act like a luxury dog!
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If he can fit into a LV Neverful, he is a luxury pet! 
The title is misleading. It’s not that Gen Z gave up on home ownership (and is presumably renting). The real issue is adult children who live at low or no cost in their parents’ homes, who spend their money on buying stuff. This is nothing new. Families have always had adult children who continue to live at home, and live large on their meager earnings by buying stuff, since they don’t have to pay for rent and food. Before the sexual revolution, young people who wanted to have sex usually married for it - and moved into their own apartment, then their own starter home. Once it became acceptable to have sex without marriage, and even to have sex in one’s parents’ homes without marriage, there was less incentive to get married, less incentive to move out. After all, why buy the (housing) cow, when you’re getting the milk for free?
Wise parents who want to guide their children toward self-sufficiency, and the life fulfillment that comes with that, charge their working adult children who live at home for room and board, at close to market rate, so that their child won’t feel that he’s rich on meager earnings. Parents who do this frequently save it all for the child, and then gift it to them when the child decides to move out.
Young adults who choose to live at home with their parents, and blow their money on luxury goods, which are usually depreciating assets, are missing out on the wealth-building opportunity of owning residential real estate, if buying a home was at all possible. But of course, for many, it’s just not possible. Think of people who grew up in high-priced real estate areas, who then return to that area for a first job. They may never earn enough to afford to buy a home equivalent even to their parents’ modest starter home, let alone the larger home that their parents may currently have.
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I think you meant when you are getting the barn for free! 
Just an aside, I find this new wave of young people buying designer dogs a disturbing trend. The rescue movement is definitely waning, which is very sad.
One thing I’ve definitely instilled in my kids, is don’t you ever buy a purebred or designer dog!
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My good friend went against her gut and bought a golden from a breeder they researched, it’s a year old and just mauled their 12 year old chihuahua rescue they’ve had for almost 12 years. The golden has been very hard this whole year, even with trainers. Completely disemboweled the poor thing in front of the whole family. RIP. My kids would never purchase a dog but will probably all have them. My designer dog is a mini Jack (aka mutt of course) rescued in West Virginia, she’s pretty perfect.
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