Who’s living under your roof?

Why a mutigenerational household can strengthen family finances and bonds

WASHINGTON » With wage stagnation, the high cost of housing and increased longevity, we need to accept that a single-family household is no longer sustainable for a lot of people.

I recently fell and badly fractured my right ankle in two places. I can’t drive for at least a month. It’s difficult to get around my home.

My husband works, and two of our three children are away at college. But the eldest moved home recently to save on housing costs while finishing her last year of graduate school. I’m so grateful she’s back. With late classes and a part-time internship, she’s been able to fill in the caregiving gaps.

I’ve long been an advocate for shared housing, because so many people struggle to make ends meet. Yet they cling to living in a single-family household situation even if it means financial devastation.

Having limited mobility, I’ve become even more convinced that we need to embrace a new normal.

Young adults shouldn’t be viewed as failures for living with their parents well into their 20s. If they are otherwise responsible, why should they flail financially trying to keep up with crushing rent and student-loan payments?

On the other end of the age spectrum, seniors who can no longer safely live alone shouldn’t dread the prospect of giving up their independence by moving in with their adult children and grandchildren. They have as much to give as they get.

What if we looked at our housing a lot differently than we have in recent times?

“Multigenerational living arrangements might improve financial resources, buffer stress, reduce loneliness, enhance intel-

The Color Of Money