According to a study conducted by Pew Research Center, many Gen Zers are still relying on their parents to make ends meet. In the survey, Pew found that only 16 percent of 18 to 24 year-olds said they were completely financially independent. When looking at research from 1980, 32 percent of all 22-year-olds were financially independent. In just the past decade, the number of parents who say they have supported their adult child has doubled. According to Pew, in 2023 60 percent of parents said they have supported their adult child while in 2013, the number was only 30 percent. Some parents have reported spending an average of $1,400 a month helping their adult kids with groceries, tuition, and more.

This new norm is leaving parents frazzled. Paying for college is one thing, but continuing to financially support their adult children when they have full-time jobs is another. Some parents argue that they would rather their children remain living with them and knowing that they are safe and taken care of as opposed to them fully supporting themselves. However, with a difficult job market, student loans and inflation, Gen Z faces significant financial hurdles. Over the past 20 years, the average student debt has more than doubled, averaging just over $37,000 per person. "More and more young people are seeking higher education," Monica Kirkpatrick Johnson, a professor of sociology at Washington State University, said. "They're staying in school longer, and while they're doing that, they are delaying their earning capacity." Housing prices have also skyrocketed in recent years, According to Zillow, people need 80 percent more income to comfortable afford to buy a home as compared to four years ago.

While dealing with their financial hurdles, Gen Z are opting to live with their parents for much longer than other generations. According to research, the number of 25 to 34 year-olds living with their parents in the US has climbed by 87 percent over the past two decades. Milestones such as getting married and starting a family are happening later and later for Gen Z. Teresa Bailey, a senior wealth strategist at Waddell & Associates argues that Gen X parents are among the earliest to demonstrate an openness to providing such financial support. "This generation of parents went through 2008, 2009, 2010 as relatively young adults, and they really experienced financial hardship," she said. "They are in many ways the product of that mindset and want things to be different for their children."