Is the number of young Irish adults still living in their family home on the decline?

The proportion of young adults still living in the family home has become emblematic of Ireland’s housing crisis. Runaway housing costs are perceived to have trapped a generation in their childhood bedrooms, infantilising them while burdening parents who have long since paid their dues.

This makes Eurostat’s latest figures on the proportion of 18-34 year olds living with their parents interesting reading. The 2025 statistics show that 61.7 per cent of young Irish adults fall into this category.

Compared with an EU average of 50.1 per cent, this puts Ireland seventh in the European league table.

These figures broadly support the narrative that high housing costs are preventing Ireland’s young people from cutting the apron strings.

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In Balkan and Mediterranean countries, intergenerational living is a cultural norm. Therefore, these countries register consistently high proportions of young adults living in the family home. This is not true in Ireland.

When conditions have allowed it, the proportion has dropped to as low as 42.4 per cent. When not, it has spiked to 64 per cent. No other EU country has experienced such variation.

While the headline numbers are striking, there are some caveats and positives to note. Firstly, the statistics somewhat disadvantage Ireland. Eurostat classifies third-level students who are financially supported by their parents as living with them, even if they have physically moved out.

Ireland enjoys the highest rate of third-level education in the EU so, at the margin, this influences our position in the league table.

Secondly, things are moving in the right direction. The 61.7 per cent figure represents a significant drop from 64 per cent in 2022. This may reflect a continued unwinding of young adults returning to their parents’ homes during Covid. But it may also reflect factors that are genuinely improving access to housing.

Home building has picked up, rent inflation has stabilised, house price inflation is easing, and Government schemes that aim to bridge the affordability gap continue to be rolled out.

Mortgage rates have also fallen, and it will be interesting to see if the tentative shift away from parental dependency withstands any weakening of that tailwind.