Multigenerational Housing Trends

Living in multi-generational households is common in many cultures. It has long been stigmatized in the United States. When the Great Recession led to significant unemployment numbers for young adults, many reluctantly moved back to their childhood home to live with their parents. Once there, many have warmed to the idea of keeping family under one roof to maintain more control over their finances.

Aging Americans

As the economy began to recover, the percentage of multi-generational households continued to increase. The rising cost of retirement home living and in-home health care providers has led many older Americans to move in with children or spend some portion of the year living with each offspring. With improvements in medical science and statistics showing increased life expectancy, one might think older Americans were the group driving multi-generational housing number. But, since 2012, young adults between 25 and 35 have been the group most likely to live in a multi-generational home.

Numbers increased in all age groups but one

Though the percentage of homes that have more than one generation residing there has increased at a slower rate post-recession, the increase continues across all ethnic, racial groups, and genders. For seniors, the women who outlived their husbands are most likely to be living in a multi-generational home. For young adults, men are way more likely than women to be living under the same roof with their parents. According to the Pew Research Center, the only age group that has had a decrease in the percentage of people living in multi-generational homes is people ages 65 to 84. They had a very small decrease between the years of 2010 and 2012.

Numbers have doubled since 1980

According to an analysis of data from the U.S. Census Bureau, Pew Research Center finds the number of individuals with a multi-generational home increased from 28 million in 1980 to 57 million in 2012. The numbers have increased steadily each decade, going from 35 million in 1990 to 42 million in 2000. For the first decade of the 21st century, the number of people residing in multi-generational houses increased from 42 million to 54 million. The upward trend has slowed, but numbers continue to increase.

Will continue being a significant portion of the housing market

The National Association of Realtors reports that 14 percent of homes purchased in 2014 were for the purpose of accommodating multiple generations of occupants under the same roof. Just under 25 percent of those buyers said it was due to boomerang kids. That is people over the age of 18 who once moved out and then moved back home to their parents. That number is 33 percent for buyers aged 59 to 67. Thirty-eight percent of those multi-generational home buyers between 49 and 58 bought to accommodate their boomerang kids.

What it means to the housing market

The traditional 3 bed, 2 bath house is less desirable to more buyers. More buyers want two master bedrooms on the main floor. The ideal design is a split floor plan with bedrooms on the main floor and added privacy for the living area of family members. More buyers seek large dining rooms than large kitchens. The dining room was almost considered obsolete a few years back. It now provides and additional room for the extra occupants to create their own little home within the home. It frequently serves as a second living room, where the family member(s) can have their own TV, computer, etc.
Regional and national builders are already mindful of the impact multi-generational home buyers will have on the real estate market. They change house designs to match the current economic conditions and trends. Home sellers and real estate agents should also consider how they can make room for this growing segment of home buyers.