Today my friend Mila is giving us some much needed advice about living with your parents post college. Let us know what you think!
Many of us Gen Yers and Millennials have had it rough financially. Throughout all of high school, we are told to go to college, even if we have to pay for it ourselves. So we go, and end up coming out with a semi-useless degree and A LOT of debt.
Cost Of Living Is Skyrocketing
Then, we live in a time where cost of living is continually skyrocketing, but our salaries (if we are lucky enough to have found a job) are not increasing with the times, leaving a living wage pay gap. This makes it difficult for us to pay rent, our student loans, and all of our other bills, while still trying to find money to buy groceries. Forget about actually being able to save emergency money!
So, some people have opted to (or really have no choice but to) move back home with the parents. I am one of these people. I sometimes feel embarrassed about it, but I just have to remind myself that moving back home has become increasingly common with our generation, and there is nothing to be ashamed about.
Living Paycheck To Paycheck Is Stressful
Living on your own and having to live paycheck to paycheck is extremely stressful. You are constantly worried that if you miss one day of work due to illness or family tragedy that you will not be able to pay your bills. Moving back in with your parents can help alleviate that stress, but it can introduce another…
Living With Your Parents Can Also Be Stressful
Living with your parents as an adult can be stressful in it’s own way. Going from having the freedom to live how you want to having to follow house rules again can be tough. Don’t get me wrong. I LOVE my parents dearly. But, I’m in my late 20’s, and I’m ready to be living on my own for good!
Buuuut, my finances don’t allow it. True to everything I said at the beginning, I’m working on paying my student loans, and I don’t get paid enough to afford rent and all my bills. And I’m sure others in my situation are doing the same.
But At Least You Can Build Your Savings
Living with your parents gives you a chance to relax about your money problems for a bit. You can take the money that would have gone to rent, utilities, and groceries, and put it towards your other bills and focus on putting money in your savings. In the year I’ve lived with my parents, I have been able to build up my savings quite a bit, which has allowed me to be able start planning when I can make big purchases, like buying my own house.
Making Sacrifices To Meet Your Long-Term Goals
There are definitely frustrating things about living at home. You can’t host parties (even the mild kind!) whenever you want, you have to respect the rules of the house, and you can’t decorate or organize the things in the house the way you want them to be. But sometimes you have to make personal sacrifices for a time to be able to find some stability.
So, to those of you who are back at home living with your parents, try not to feel bad or embarrassed about it. It’s something many others are having to go through, and it’s better to feel secure than to be stressing all the time if you are going to have enough money to last you the month. Living at home isn’t a sign you’ve failed life, it’s an opportunity for you to focus on saving and getting financially stable. It’s not permanent, and in no time, you’ll be back out there living on your own, taking life by storm!
Bio: Mila Sanchez is a writer with a BA in English Linguistics living in beautiful Boise, ID. Her ambitions include traveling the world, studying languages, and taking pictures of her dog, Baymax. Connect with her on twitter and instagram!
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We still have one living with us and it works out just fine. They still need to pay something and this needs to be worked out ahead of time.
Absolutely! As a parent, I’d definitely make them pay for something. Good point!
Thanks for pointing that out Candy! I didn’t address that, but I absolutely think people should be contributing when moving back in with their parents. I pay a small rent to my parents so that I’m not taking advantage of their generosity.
This is such a cool post! I haven’t seen much about this, but I really like how you laid it out 🙂 Love your blog lay out by the way!!
Thanks, Shannon! Glad you liked it! Hope you have a great weekend! ☺️☺️
Thank you for the kind comment about my guest post 😀
Although I’m a little older than you, I moved back in with my parents in my mid-thirties following a divorce. I lived with them for a year while I saved up some money and they were able to help me out with my daughter. There were a few drawbacks (like it was weird having to tell someone where I was going all the time) but overall it was a really positive experience!
Oh man! Yea I bet that took some getting used to. But at the end of the day, of it made sense financially, and was best for your family, that’s what matters. Thanks for stopping by! ☺️
I lived with my mom a few years before I met my husband and moved in with him. I saved TONs of money!
Thanks for the comment! Ya, it’s definitely a financially wise decision, especially in this economy!
Both my brothers lived with my parents post college. I moved in for about 3 weeks while my house was being renovated and it was awful! My mom and I just do better with a mile or 2 between us ?
That’s how my sister and I are xD I love her, but we both know we don’t do well living together, haha.
Thanks for the comment!
OMG SO TRUE! I’m in college and living with my parents so I totally get it.
Alix | http://www.apintsizedlifeblog.com
So wise to stay home while in college! I moved out in my last 2 years of college, and that’s when the major school loan debt started rolling in. Good luck in school, and thanks for the comment!
Hi there! I actually loved living with my parents after college (although I spent some time living on my own first, so that might’ve had an effect on my experience.) You can definitely miss having your own space sometimes, but overall it can be great to bond with your parents on a more adult level. My parents are like my best friends these days! ^_^
Dee | http://employedforgood.com
Thanks for the comment Dee!
I love my parents so much, and my mom is like my best friend, but after having my own space for a few years, it’s definitely difficult being back home for me. I lived on my own for about 3 years, one of those years being abroad, so I definitely got used to my own way of doing things, haha. Thanks for the comment!
I know so many people who moved back in with mom and dad or lived with family right out of college to save money. It can be SO SMART…buying a house (or renting a city apartment) is NOT cheap!!
Coming Up Roses
Thanks for sharing this! I recently moved home (age 23) after doing a year of traveling after receiving my bachelors degree and working in other states. I’m really struggling to swallow the reality that I will be back in my small rural town again, but I’m trying not to shame myself. I believe I am my biggest enemy at the moment, because I’m well aware of the stigma that comes with moving back in with my parents. I’m labeling myself as a boomerang kid more than anybody else, honestly. But I must also be aware that my goal is to save for graduate school so that I can try and pay my way through without taking out any mores student loans (undergrad got to me). Staying positive through this process has been incredibly hard, in part because I miss my nomadic lifestyle, but it simply wasn’t sustainable. It’s time to buckle down and start working, so here I am. Thankful for parents who welcome me home with open arms. Trying not to feel embarrassed.