April 20 (UPI) — A U.S. Census Bureau report shows young adults are struggling to get a foothold into adulthood, as 1 in 3 young people live with their parents — 2.2 million of whom do not go to school and are not employed.
The Changing Economics and Demographics of Young Adulthood report analyzes the differences seen in young adults 18 years to 34 years of age over the last 40 years.
The report looks at the young adult experience by contrasting the milestones of adulthood, which are: completed formal schooling; employed full-time; capable of supporting a family financially; financially independent from parents/guardians; no longer living in parents’ household; get married; and have a child.
The report shows that young adults think educational and economic achievements are milestones of adulthood more important than marriage and parenthood, which 11.5 percent and 10.4 percent of young adults said were “extremely important,” compared to 61.5 percent who said the same of completing formal schooling and 51.5 percent who said the same for being employed full-time.
More than half of young Americans believe marriage and parenthood are not important in order to become an adult — 54.6 percent and 55.1 percent, respectively.
The report shows that 24 million 18- to 34-year-olds lived in their parents’ home in 2015, the most on record.
“Of young people living in their parents’ home, 1 in 4 are idle, that is they neither go to school nor work. This figure represents about 2.2 million 25- to 34-year-olds,” the report said.
The number of young people living in their parents’ home has increased in the past decade.
“In 2005, the majority of young adults lived independently in their own household, which was the predominant living arrangement in 35 states,” the report said. “A decade later, by 2015, the number of states where the majority of young people lived independently fell to just six.”
Young people are also delaying marriage, but most still do marry. In the 1970s, 8 out of 10 people married by the age of 30. Today, 8 out of 10 people are married by the age of 45.
The report also shows young men are “falling to the bottom of the income ladder.”
“In 1975, only 25 percent of men, aged 25 to 34, had incomes of less than $30,000 per year. By 2016, that share rose to 41 percent of young men,” the report said.
Between 1975 and 2016, the percent of women aged 25 to 34 who were homemakers fell from 43 percent to 14 percent.
