           Young adults are finding it harder and harder to leave the nest. Not only is it scary to try to make it on your own, without the comfort of mom and dad to support and bail you out, the constant increase in rent can give a person more to worry about. Because of this, more adults are choosing to stay at home or to return home, home of course is referring to their parents’ house.
          This is a prevailing phenomenon in Cambria Heights. At a time in an individual’s life, where they are old enough, they are holding down a good job and possibly mature enough to strike out on their own- they choose to stay with mommy and daddy.
          “Leaving mom’s embrace has its expenses,” said Jennifer Jones, a college student. She describes the obvious drawbacks of striking out on one’s own. Ms. Jones knows of many young adults who refuse to leave home.
          Living in this neighborhood has provided a standard of living that would be hard for one to continue without some help. “I will not leave my parents’ house until I can maintain the lifestyle they have given me wherever I go,” declared Whitney Jones, a 21-year old resident who has lived in Cambria Heights all her life.
           It’s becoming increasingly difficult to leave the nest when considering the obstacles and time it takes to eventually own a home in a similar quiet, middle-class neighborhood.
I know that this is happening in my circle of friends, but I did not realize that until you pointed it out in your post. It is true that many young adults would rather stay at home than move out even when they already work.
Is it a trend found mostly in metropolitan areas? Because I would think that in places where houses are dirt cheap and apartments are what we would consider a steal, it would be less prevalent.
It’s hard out there on your own. I still live at home, but I am dying to get my own place. I am trying to find some place that is safe and somewhat affordable. But in NYC I doubt that.
The main problem that’s stopping young adults from living on their own is high rents in NYC. For $1500, can get you a studio on the Upper East Side; however, that could get you a three bedroom apartment in the Midwest. No one wants to live in a crammed quarters their first year, but that might be the harsh reality if you want to live on your own in the five boroughs. Taking in account that most entry level jobs barely pay $30,000, having a roommate or roommates, is a good way to split the rent.
That’s exactly the point, these young adults are living in an area where the mortgage is anywhere from $400,000- $500,000. They don’t want to move out of their homes, it’s too costly. They can’t and don’t want to imagine moving out to places where the “standard of living” is not the same. This is a part of Queens, bordering on Long Island, that is as far away from subway stations as you can get.
It’s expensive to live on your own in New York. I used to think it was just in Jamaica that young people lived with their parents long after they were supposed to be on their own even though they had a JOB, But I have found due to expenses it is just as necessary here.
My parents arrived in the states last year to stay permanently and it is only due to this act that I could return to school after three years.