
New research from TopCashback has found that half of parents (52 per cent) who have children aged 18-30 living with them at home, currently let them live rent and board free. This is despite the fact that by having their adult children live with them, parents estimate it adds an extra £630 a year to their utility bills alone.
However, as bills and the cost of living continue to rise, nearly one in three parents (32 per cent) who don’t currently charge rent, think they may have to join the 48 per cent of parents who do. Those who do charge rent and board to their adult children do so to teach them good financial habits (61 per cent). Similarly, parents believe contributing to costs is part of being an adult (60 per cent) and they want to give their children an understanding of the real world (52 per cent).
Though the majority of those who charge rent (71 per cent) don’t earmark this for specific bills just an overall total amount, a fifth (21 per cent) ask their children to contribute specifically to electricity, 19 per cent to gas and 13 per cent to broadband.
Adam Bullock, UK Director of TopCashback, said “It’s clear from the research that having adult children living at home adds a considerable financial strain to parents. It’s already a challenging time for people with the cost of living crisis and huge energy bills. Even though the energy cap will now be remaining until the end of June, another utility bill going up is about to add extra pressure on people’s shoulders, as broadband bills are set to rise by up to 17.3% in April.”
The financial burden of adult children isn’t limited to those who live with their children. Two fifths (40 per cent) of those who have at least one child that doesn’t live with them, support them financially. More than one in 10 (12 per cent) do so on a monthly basis and 28 per cent ad hoc throughout the year. Those with younger children aged 18-19 are most likely to provide financial support (53 per cent), but a third of parents (33 per cent) with a child aged 25-30 still help out.
Parents who help out their children living away from home, estimate they provide £826 in support each year. This financial support mainly goes towards groceries and essential shopping (57 per cent), along with non-essential costs i.e. covering the cost of travel, funding their social life and hobbies (34 per cent), mobile bills (27 per cent) and essential bills (24 per cent).
Supporting their adult children doesn’t come without financial challenges for the parents themselves. Over half (52 per cent) of those who live with or support their adult children have had to make significant sacrifices in order to do so. A third (33 per cent) have had to cut down on nonessential spending, more than one in five (22 per cent) have dipped into their savings and the same number (20 per cent) have had to alter their lifestyle.
Furthermore, a third (34 per cent) of parents say that if costs continue to rise, they will have to ask for more in rent or lower the amount they support their child with.
Yet the cost of living is also the number one reason parents currently feel they need to support their children. Thirty-four per cent of parents who provide financial support believe it’s impossible for their children to survive without their support and 22 per cent feel obligated to support them.
Bullock concluded “The cost of living crisis is hitting all of us hard at the moment. But parents who are still financially helping their adult children out, mainly through necessity, are facing a double burden as their child’s cost of living rises too. Few parents want to be in a position where they have to withdraw their support.”