A new analysis of U.S. Census data is confirming what a lot of us already suspected, adulthood is looking different for Gen Z. Nearly one in five Americans between the ages of 25 and 34 are now living with their parents or grandparents, the highest level ever recorded.
Experts are pointing to a rough combination of factors making it harder for young adults to move out and stay out. Expensive housing, high mortgage rates, rising rents, and a tough job market are all playing a part. For a lot of young people, the traditional path of getting your own place, buying a home, and building independence just isn't lining up the way it used to.
Some folks see this as a sign that adulthood itself is being delayed, that Gen Z is taking longer to grow up. But researchers are pushing back on that idea. They say it's less about lost opportunity and more about a later start. The milestones haven't disappeared, they're just showing up on a different timeline than they did for previous generations.
It's a reminder that the economy young people are stepping into today looks nothing like the one their parents came up in, and maybe the timeline for "making it" needs to stretch a little to match that reality.