Generations come together under one roof to avoid high cost of living

ABC NEWS (Australia)

With housing costs soaring, different generations are living together under one roof. Known as multi-generational living, Dr Edgar Lyooh a senior research fellow UNSW says an increasing number of families are seeing the benefist of communual living.

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00:00 As a proportion, it has always been about one in every five people or one in every three

00:06 families but in terms of numbers as our population has grown, yes we are seeing more and more

00:11 families choosing this arrangement.

00:13 And this isn't just grown up kids moving back in with mum and dad, this is grown up kids,

00:18 their families moving in with mum and dad, but grandparents also there as well.

00:21 Yeah, so there's all kinds of combinations, it's not just kids not wanting to leave home.

00:27 We're certainly seeing a lot more people, older people joining these kind of families,

00:31 particularly when you hear about the not so nice stories of nursing homes or retirement

00:35 accommodation.

00:36 They're also concerned about the cost themselves as well of those care and as well as their

00:42 everyday living.

00:43 Is money the main driver?

00:45 Money certainly was the main driver.

00:47 When we did our survey, more than half people said that it was one of their many reasons

00:52 and then the next most common was the provision of care.

00:55 Is multi-generational living something that's more common in particular cultures?

01:00 When you look at it by birthplace, yes it would be.

01:03 Those would be for cultural reasons as well as religious reasons.

01:06 Some cultures, for example, you might not be allowed to leave home until you get married

01:11 but otherwise we're more likely to see people from other cultures to do this.

01:17 Did you find that when people decide that they want to move in together, does each generation

01:21 sell their own property or move out of their own property in order to move into a much

01:26 bigger one?

01:27 Is that usually how it works?

01:28 It's actually quite uncommon, particularly when the situation comes relatively suddenly,

01:33 for example, because of a relationship breakdown that you need to find accommodation very quickly.

01:38 So it's more likely that someone would join an existing household.

01:41 They may decide to buy something together or rent something together later on but it's

01:46 more common that someone would join an existing family already.

01:49 And is this something that we're seeing more in cities or in the regions?

01:53 We did our project primarily in the city but we're seeing that most of these families will

01:58 live in the middle and outer suburbs where larger properties are more readily available.

02:02 There must be downsides to having many generations living under one roof.

02:07 What were the main disadvantages to it that you found in your research?

02:11 Yeah, even though they said the thing they liked the most was having companionship around,

02:16 it's a very thin line, isn't it, having too much companionship?

02:20 So certainly the lack of privacy was one and we did find that because it's family, people

02:25 tend to toe the line a bit more so you tend to push the line further than you would or

02:29 you might go into someone's room without knocking or borrowing something without asking.

02:34 So that certainly made it a little bit worse as well.

02:37 How do the finances work?

02:39 Is it equally shared?

02:40 Costs equally shared?

02:42 It depends on the individual discussion.

02:45 We certainly find that families often discuss this very openly, whether you contribute to

02:52 the bills or you pay board or you co-purchase something together.

02:57 We have certainly seen arrangements where it was the parents who put the deposit down

03:01 and then it was the kids who pay the mortgage because they are the ones who are earning

03:05 whereas the parents are not.

03:07 So there are different kinds of arrangements.

03:08 And in the course of your research, Edgar, have you picked up any tips from people who

03:12 are living in a multi-generational way to live in harmony?

03:16 Certainly open communication.

03:18 Talk to your family, don't just sit there and brew and self-sulk.

03:21 soak.

03:22 [BLANK_AUDIO]

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