Vanessa Goldberg in the Gen Z section of the Nevermind Shop in Upton, Nov. 18, 2021.
San Diego, California – A new Pew Research Center analysis of U.S. Census data reveals that 18.5% of San Diego’s 25- to 34-year-olds are living with their parents — a figure that exceeds the national average of 17.7%. This growing trend of “boomerang kids” — adult children returning to the family home — reflects broader cultural, economic, and demographic shifts across California and the nation.
Once viewed as a sign of a “failure to launch,” living at home is increasingly seen as a pragmatic choice in the face of rising living costs, caregiving responsibilities, and changing cultural norms. San Diego’s numbers reflect a broader pattern across California: Four of the five U.S. metro areas with the highest percentage of young adults living at home are in the Golden State.
While San Diego’s 18.5% is above average, some California cities report even higher shares. In Merced, for example, 30% of young adults live with their parents. Vallejo and Oxnard top the list nationally, with 33% of young adults living at home. In contrast, only 3% do so in places like Odessa, Texas, and Lincoln, Nebraska.
Interestingly, Pew found that housing costs and unemployment rates did not strongly correlate with young adults’ likelihood of living at home — challenging assumptions that affordability alone is driving the trend. In 2023, 32% of young adults in El Centro, California, lived at home while the area reported an 8.2% unemployment rate. In contrast, Cheyenne, Wyoming, had just 4% living at home and only a 1.4% unemployment rate.
Race and ethnicity emerged as more significant factors. White young adults are less likely to live at home than their Asian, Hispanic, and Black peers. Metro areas with higher percentages of non-white young adults tend to have more living in multigenerational households. In Merced, for instance, only 18% of young adults are white — well below the 48% average across the 258 metros studied.
San Diego is also above the national average in multigenerational households — a trend not limited to Gen Z. Millennials are increasingly joining their parents’ homes, contributing to a steady rise in multigenerational living. While most young adults say living at home helps their finances, they’re less enthusiastic about the social trade-offs.
