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Economy

Why Do So Many Young Adults Live With Their Parents?

For young black Americans, it’s because rents are too damn high: For white ones, it’s about jobs.
Graduating, but not from their childhood bedroom. For Americans ages 18-to-34, residing in a parent's home without a spouse is the most common living arrangement according to the Census Bureau.
Graduating, but not from their childhood bedroom. For Americans ages 18-to-34, residing in a parent's home without a spouse is the most common living arrangement according to the Census Bureau.John Amis/AP
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So, why are more and more young adults living at home—and for longer stretches than ever before?

“The economy, duh!” is, indeed, the right answer. But it’s not the complete answer.