We look through a different lens today than we did before

Source: Pew Research Center

About seven-in-ten Americans think young adults today have a harder time than their parents’ generation when it comes to saving for the future (72%), paying for college (71%) and buying a home (70%), according to a Pew Research Center survey conducted in October 2021. These findings come at a time when younger Americans are more likely than previous generations to have taken on student debt with tuition costs steadily rising, and to face an affordable housing crisis as rent and housing prices have grown markedly faster than incomes in the last decade.”

Pew data notes that nearly one in three young adults – ages 25 to 29 – live in a multigenerational household, with males (37%) representing the majority of younger adults availing of a range of benefits – from shielding them from poverty to providing them time and resources to save for later steps into their own households.

Another significant driver that’s adding momentum to the overall trend is practical, emotional, financial, and logistical challenges of “caregiving” – whether it’s providing young parents help with their very young children, or giving aging parents a place to live connected and supported at a time of skyrocketing medical and healthcare costs:

A third of U.S. adults in multigenerational households say caregiving is a major reason for their living arrangement, including 25% who cite adult caregiving and 12% who cite child care. Among the other reasons given for living in a multigenerational household, 28% say it’s the arrangement they’ve always had, while smaller shares cite a change in relationship status (15%), or companionship (12%) as a major reason why they live with family members. About one-in-eight adults (13%) say the coronavirus pandemic is a factor in why they live with multiple generations under one roof.

A quarter of adults in multigenerational households say caregiving actually is occurring in their homes, either in the form of personal care for another adult in the household or care for a child younger than 18 who is not the caregiver’s own child. Those with lower (30%) and middle (24%) incomes are more likely than those with upper incomes (15%) to say caregiving is occurring in their household. Among adults living with a parent age 65 and older, 23% say they personally provide care for another adult in the household at least sometimes, compared with 8% of those living with a parent younger than 65.

Hybrids, as they morph what was “this” and “that” into a new combination this, give homes and their value a new mix of conditions, challenges, and opportunities for architects, engineers, builders, and property developers.

As prices for all manner of needs and wants cut loose from their moorings as they haven’t done for a half-century or so, we see an entirely new hybrid shaping the future of home design, purpose, and performance.

A confluence of “for financial reasons” and “discretionary choice” will reshape multigenerational households and their homes for some time to come.

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