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Don’t Make Me Say I Told You So 49

1
21.6% of Americans age 25 to 34 live at home. Another Pew
study showed there are approximately 2.5 million children

living with their grandparents without the presence of either
2
parent. This means that not only are some seniors providing
financial support for their grandchildren, but they are actually
the primary caregivers. Pew also found that the share of people

in multigenerational households has grown by a third since
1980 to 16% of the population. 3

Sociologist Linda Waite, a coauthor of the University of
Chicago study, boiled it down to this: “Grandparents are being

asked to help financially and relieve the financial burden of

childcare, by taking care of their grandchildren.”

One-In-Five Americans Live in a Multigenerational Household

% of population in multigenerational households

21%
20%

17%
15% 15%
14%
13%
12%
1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2009 2016

Note: Multigenerational households include at least two adult generations or grandparents and grandchildren younger than 25
Source: Pew Research Center analysis of 1950-2000 decennial censuses and 2006-2016 American Community Survey (IPUMS).

Chapter 2: You’ll Need More Money Than You Think