Nearly half of people in their early 20s still receive help from their parents in paying their rent, according to a new analysis by the New York Times of more than 2,000 young people from 2007 to 2013.
With jobs so concentrated in metro areas – and where rents are often sky-high – young people are increasingly turning to their parents for financial assistance. The study’s researchers, controlling for other factors, found that young adults living in big cities receive twice as much support than their smaller city counterparts.
Overall, about 40 percent of 22- 24-year-olds receive some type of financial assistance from their parents for living expenses.
The average amount of assistance is about $250 a month, which covers 29 percent of median monthly housing costs in the nation’s metro areas, according to the study.
However, the amount varies depending on career choice and geography of the young adult. For example, 53 percent of young people who are striving for a career in art and design receive rent money from their parents. They receive, on average, $3,600 a year from their parents. Other fields where young people receive some of the greatest financial assistance from their parents: STEM, education and social work, professional services, health, and blue collar and military. On the other hand, young adults working in farming, construction, retail, and personal services receive the least amount of assistance from their parents, the study showed.
Source: “A Secret of Many Urban 20-Somethings: Their Parents Help With the Rent,” The New York Times (Feb. 9, 2017)
