New York City

Many Millennials Rely on Mom and Dad to Afford Rising Housing Costs, Study Finds

What to Know

  • Millennials received the most help from their families when it comes to monthly rent and down payments, study found
  • The report found that 7.9 percent of non-student millennials surveyed receive money from family members to pay their monthly rent
  • As home and rent prices increased faster than incomes over the past decades, millennials have found it hard to achieve owning a home

As home and rent prices increased faster than incomes over the past decades, millennials have found it hard to achieve the American Dream of owning a home. Add to that the burden of student loan debt and many millennials find themselves struggling to pay for housing.

A report published by Apartment List looked into one way millennials are affording rising housing costs — mom and dad.

The study, which looked at 13,000 respondents, determined that millennials received the most help from their families when it comes to monthly rent and down payments.

The report found that 7.9 percent of non-student millennials surveyed receive money from family members to pay their monthly rent. In addition, “of those receiving help, the parents of one in three millennials pay their children’s rents in full.”

The share of New York City renters who receive parental assistance for rent is 13.6 percent, while those who receive assistance with a down payment for a house is 18.1 percent, according to the report.

According to Apartment List, since 2000, home prices have increased 2.4 times more than incomes for households headed by someone younger than 35, while rents increased 61 percent since 2000, more than double the growth in incomes for young households over the same period

The Pew Research Center also found 15 percent of 25 to 35-year-old millennials live at home with their parents to save money on rent, Apartment List reported.

When it comes to achieving what some may consider the American Dream — owning a home — the report found that 17.1 percent of millennials who were surveyed expect help from their family in securing a down payment. Of those, one in three expect that family support will cover at least 30 percent of their down payment.

However, Apartment List notes that these figures likely understate the prevalence of parental assistance since “some millennials receive assistance from parents for no specific expense and others receive help with one-time costs such as a deposit, moving costs or furniture.”

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