Boomerang generation reshapes market

Carol Lewis in the Sunday Times discusses the trend of adult children moving back home and its impact on the housing market. Lewis suggests that parents are increasingly purchasing larger homes to accommodate their grown-up children, driven by high living costs and the desire to support their children's financial stability. According to a report by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), the proportion of UK adults in their twenties and thirties living with their parents has risen by over a third in the past two decades. The IFS calculates that these "boomerang children" are 3.9 percentage points more likely to save £10,000 over two years than renters, averaging £560 a month in savings. Lower marriage and parenthood rates, along with increased ill health in the 25-34 age group, have coincided with the trend of children staying with their parents for longer. Since 2006, marriage rates have fallen from 39% to 29%, and the proportion with dependent children has dropped from 45% to 33%. 

The Sunday Times (02/03/2025)