Amid soaring rents and a tight rental market, a recent survey sheds light on when Australians believe it’s time to leave the nest.
According to a study conducted by the financial comparison platform Finder, 1,010 Australians were polled regarding the age at which adults should no longer live with their parents. On average, respondents determined that the age of 31 marks the point when living at home becomes “too old.”
The survey reveals that both Gen Z and Baby Boomers are the most stringent, concurring that the age of 30 is the limit for living in a family environment.
Meanwhile, Millennials and Gen X show a bit more leniency, deeming 32 as a more acceptable age to move out.
Interestingly, parents with children under 18 tend to have a stricter stance, opting for age 30, while those without children lean towards 32 as the ideal cut-off.
But Finder’s personal finance expert Sarah Megginson says those numbers don’t reflect the financial reality many Australians are living through.
“We know renters are doing it tough — Finder’s data shows 47 per cent of Aussie tenants struggled to pay their rent in June,” Megginson told SBS News.
“In many suburbs, renters are spending half of their weekly income or more just on rent, and after other bills are paid there’s not much left over for groceries and simply living.”
The accepted benchmark for rental stress is spending 30 per cent of income on rent — a threshold Megginson says many Australians would now consider “welcome relief” by comparison.
She says the housing crisis is pushing back the traditional markers of adulthood.
“The traditional milestones of adulthood are being pushed further back, with many people delaying moving out, buying a home and starting a family,” she said.
It’s not necessarily a new trend, either — though data does suggest it’s accelerated in recent years.
A July report from research firm McCrindle found young Australians were living with their parents for longer. In 2006, 60 per cent of 19-year-olds lived at home — but by 2021, that figure climbed to 70 per cent.
Their analysis found that young Australians were being challenged with high levels of student debt and a competitive housing market — with some returning to the family nest after moving out to accelerate savings for a housing deposit.
Almost three in five Australians (57 per cent) said they’re open to or would welcome living in a multi-generational home with their family — defined as three or more generations living under the same roof.
Twelve per cent currently live in a multi-generational home, McCrindle found, while 32 per cent have done so in the past — with those who speak a language other than English at home significantly more likely to live in this way.
People living in multi-generational households previously told SBS’ The Feed the arrangement can help families share costs and caring responsibilities, while providing greater security as relatives age. But some said Australian homes were not well designed to accommodate several generations.
Different cultural backgrounds also played a role in attitudes towards multi-generational living, they said.
Rents high, vacancies low
The pressure to move out of home is playing out against a rental market that’s becoming steadily less forgiving.
Nationally, rents rose 3.08 per cent quarter-on-quarter in June and 6.35 per cent over the year, according to REA Group, taking the median weekly rent for a dwelling to $670.
Perth recorded the steepest annual rise, up 10.29 per cent to a $750 median, followed by Hobart (up 9.09 per cent, to $600) and Darwin (up 7.69 per cent, to $700).
Sydney remains the most expensive capital, with rents up 6.67 per cent to an $800 median, ahead of Brisbane ($695, up 6.92 per cent), the ACT ($650, up 4.84 per cent), Adelaide ($625, up 4.17 per cent) and Melbourne ($600, up 5.26 per cent).
Vacancies are just as tight.
The national vacancy rate ticked up slightly in June, to 1.26 per cent, but that’s still far below where it sat five years ago — down 37 per cent nationally, and 47 per cent in capital cities specifically.
Darwin (0.70 per cent) and Hobart (0.72 per cent) have the least available rental stock of any capital, while Melbourne (1.51 per cent) and the ACT (1.50 per cent) have the most breathing room.
Sydney’s vacancy rate sits at 1.30 per cent, though it recorded the biggest monthly jump of any capital, up 0.14 percentage points.
Why staying home longer is becoming the norm
REA Group economist Luc Redman says that squeeze is precisely what’s keeping young Australians at home for longer.
“The rental market remains tight nationally despite some easing since the start of 2026,” Redman told SBS News.
“The rate of rental price increases certainly would be deterring consumers from entering the rental market and looking for other options where possible.”
“This has meant that younger people stay in their parents’ home for longer.”
He says the shift has a broader impact.
“That has a broader negative impact on the economy when economically productive young people aren’t able to move closer to economic opportunities,” he said.
“This has certainly shifted over the past few decades as the income of younger people hasn’t been able to keep up with rent price increases.”
Separately, July Cotality research found households are now devoting close to a third of their income to rent — a record high — compared to around 27 per cent five years ago.
That sits alongside July data from the OECD, which found Australians’ real wages have fallen 5.1 per cent since March 2021, one of the steepest declines among developed economies — making rental hikes sting even more.
Australians born in the 1990s are the first generation on record to be no better off than the one that preceded them, according to the Productivity Commission.
Megginson says living at home longer may now be the smarter financial move.
“Living with your parents at 31 may raise eyebrows, but struggling to afford rent is becoming the norm,” she said.
“Living at home longer can be a smart financial move, allowing young adults to save a deposit faster and avoid the pressure of soaring rents.”