PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – Three out of four Portland Gen Z-ers live with their family and are taking longer than previous generations to move out, a new Rent Cafe study found.
According to the study, Portland is the number 15 spot in the United States for Gen Z-ers in multigenerational households, with rates exceeding the national average.
Pew Research Center considers anyone born after 1996 to be Gen Z, while Millennials were born between 1981-1996. For their study, Rent Cafe says they only studied people who are 18 years old and older who are living at home.
Seventy-four percent of Gen Z-ers in Portland live with their parents, Rent Cafe says, noting that statistic has remained the same for the last five years.
In contrast, Millennials in Portland are more likely to live on their own, with 14% living with family members, the study found. Researchers said between 2018 and 2022, the number of millennials living with their parents dropped by 35%.
The Gen Z housing trend in Portland reflects similar attitudes nationwide, the study found.
In the United States, 20% of Millennials and 68% of Gen Z-ers live with their family, “taking longer to fly the nest compared to previous generations,” Rent Cafe said.
Additionally, metro areas on the West Coast are seeing the highest percentages of multigenerational living, with California being the most popular state for multigenerational living.
Meanwhile, Cincinnati, Ohio saw one of the biggest decreases in multigenerational households among Gen Z-ers and Millennials with a 60% decrease, according to Rent Cafe.
“Overall, Millennials are slower when it comes to leaving the nest compared to previous generations: 18% of Baby Boomers and 17% of Gen X were living with their parents at the same age as today’s average Millennials,” Rent Cafe said.
The study furthers, “likewise, Zoomers also struggle: By 22 years old, 66% of Millennials, 65% of Gen X and 61% of Baby Boomers were still at home, which was surpassed by a 68% share of Gen Z.”
Rent Café found Millennials living with their parents at the age of 32 often share their home with three or four people and point out that over 40% of Millennials and Gen Z-ers anticipate sharing their homes for at least two more years.
Researchers explained there are several factors that may influence younger generations to continue living at home, including saving on childcare costs, utility bills, rent, or a future down payment. The study also points out that more and more millennials might choose to stay home to care for family members.
