10 cities with the most (and least) young adults living at home

A study released last week by an Ohio State University researcher identified the 10 cities with the highest percentage of young adults living at home, with the Bridgeport, Conn., metro area coming in at No. 1. According to the study, highlighted in The Atlantic Cities, 34 percent of young adults age 20-34 in the area were living with their parents.

The report — titled During the Great Recession, More Young Adults Lived with Parents,” by Zhenchao Qian — looks at demographic data between 2007 and 2009, the height of the recession. On the whole, Qian found that nearly one-quarter of young adults in the target age range lived at home during that period, compared to 17 percent in 1980.

The top 10 cities with the highest percentage of young adults at home includes:

1. Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, Conn. (34 percent)
2. Honolulu (32 percent)
3. McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, Texas (31 percent)
4. Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach (31 percent)
5. New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, N.Y.-N.J. (30 percent)
6. Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, Calif. (28 percent)
7. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana (28 percent)
8. El Paso, Texas (28 percent)
9. Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, Pa. (27 percent)
10. Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, Calif. (26 percent)

The bottom 10, with the lowest percentage, includes:

91. Provo-Orem, Utah (12 percent)
92. Colorado Springs, Colo. (12 percent)
93. Oklahoma City (12 percent)
94. Omaha-Council Bluffa, Neb.-Iowa (12 percent)
95. Columbus, Ohio (11 percent)
96. Madison, Wis. (10 percent)
97. Austin-Round Rock, Texas (10 percent)
98. Boise City-Nampa, Idaho (9 percent)
99. Raleigh-Cary, N.C. (9 percent)
100. Des Moines-West Des Moines, Iowa (8 percent)

Qian points to four factors that could affect the rate of young adults forced to move back home:
• Low marriage rates
• High unemployment rates
• Low educational attainment
• Low median income

He also suggested that the size of a metro could be a factor, noting that larger cities like New York and Los Angeles had higher concentrations.

To read the rest of the Atlantic Cities story, click here.