More than 1m ‘boomerang millennials’ are still with parents

High house prices, student debt and poor wages mean young adults believe they will never own a home

A “BOOMERANG generation” of young people have been forced to return to their parents’ homes.

High house prices, poor wages and student debt have left hundreds of thousands of millennials in an adolescent limbo well into their thirties – and figures suggest many of them expect to stay there forever.

A new analysis of ONS data suggests that almost 100,000 millennials who live with their parents think they will never move out.

The “failure to launch” phenomenon means more than a million young adults are still in their childhood bedrooms – and 20 per cent of them see inheriting their parents’ home as their best chance of owning property.

If the trend continues, another half a million will be living with their parents in the next decade.

Analysis of ONS figures by insurance company Aviva suggested that the number of young people aged between 25 and 34 who still live at home has grown to 1.23 million.

A survey by the insurer found that eight per cent of them – 98,400 – say they see no prospect of ever leaving.

Dan Wilson-Craw, of campaign group Generation Rent, said many young people had given up on both the housing market and the rental market because prices were too high.

“We see it particularly in really expensive areas, where people can’t even afford to rent any more,” he said. “If you’re starting a family and working you expect that you will have your own space, but there’s a growing number of people who are finding themselves in compromised living situations.”

The numbers who are still living at home have increased by more than a third in 10 years.

The insurer added that high house prices were to blame. During this period the price of the average first home has risen from £146,000 to £211,000, while wages have stagnated.

The figures also show a gender imbalance. More men than women remained stuck at home, with men accounting for 835,000 of the “boomerang kids”.

Dr Oliver Robinson, a senior lecturer in psychology at Greenwich University, said that men were unable to deal with the demands of living independently.

“I think that men are still less good at being fully rounded human beings,” he said, adding that women are “better suited to modern life”.

‘I think men are still less good at being fully rounded human beings ... women are better suited to modern life’