More Americans than ever before are living in multi-generational households, defined as family households that include at least two adult generations or a grandparent and at least one other generation. According to a recent study of census data by the Pew Research Center, the Great Recession and changes in American demographics have spurred the reversal of a trend that began after World War II.
In 2008, 16.1 percent of the population—49 million people—lived in a multi-generational household. This represents a 33 percent increase since 1980. Forty-seven percent of these Americans live in a household including two adult generations of the same family, and another 47 percent live in households with three or more generations of family members. “Skipped generation” households, made up of a grandparent and a grandchild, account for 6 percent.
Living with one’s extended family fell out of favor in the decades after World War II as the economy boomed, the suburbs exploded, immigration dropped off, and life expectancy increased. As a result, the numbers of Americans living in households of more than one generation dropped sharply from 1950 to 1960, then declined further through 1970. By 1980, only 12 percent of the population was living in multi-generational households.
Like the previous reversal of living trends, the current revival of the multi-generational household also is driven by social and economic conditions, and it is occurring among all major demographic groups, according to the Pew study.
From 2007 to 2008 alone, during the early days of the Great Recession, the number of Americans living in multi-generational households grew by 2.6 million, a sharp spike over previous years. The continuing weakness in job markets, along with housing foreclosures, have sent many back into the family fold out of necessity.
However, other Americans are choosing multi-generational living situations for the mutual benefit and closer ties gained by all those involved: parents, children, and grandparents.
Also, the median age for first marriages has risen by five years since 1970, now about 28 for men and 26 for women. This leaves more unmarried 20-somethings, many of whom also are facing employment challenges, living at home for longer. Immigration since 1970 has been dominated by Latin Americans and Asians, who tend to be more inclined toward multi-generational households than native-born Americans.
The Pew study also found:
- In two-adult generation family living situations, the older adult heads the household in about 75 percent of all cases. But when the older adult is aged 65-plus, their share of household-head status drops.
- Young adults, particularly in the 25-34 age group, account for the greatest share of the increase in multi-generational households. Only 11 percent of this age group lived in such households in 1980, but by 2008 the percentage increased to 20. Adults in the 65-plus age group also accounted for 20 percent of multi-generational household occupants in 2008, but the increase from 1980 levels (17 percent) was less significant.
- As of 2009, 37 percent of 18-to-29-year-olds were either unemployed or otherwise out of the workforce, the highest percentage for this age group in nearly four decades.
- In a separate 2009 Pew survey, one in eight respondents aged 22 to 29 said that they have boomeranged back to their parents’ homes, after living on their own, because of the recession.
- Within the 25-34 age group, significantly more men than women are living in multi-generational households. But among older groups, women account for the larger share, partly because women tend to outlive their spouses.
- Single-person households also have increased steadily since the turn of the previous century. In 2008, 10.3 percent of Americans lived alone as heads of their own households, compared with just 1.1 percent in 1900.
For more about household shifts and demographics from the Pew Research Center, read the full report.
