[jbergmann1]

I may be lame for living at home, but for others that have recently moved out of their parents home, when did you know it was time? I’ve been working for 3 years at a small CPA firm. I have been able to save close to 70k but half is in retirement accounts. I’m just worried I won’t be able to save as much which IMO is lamer than living at home.

Any thoughts?

Passed all 4 parts of the CPA exam!
License application in progress

[aaronmo]

I agree with Allie…there isn't any objective, meaningful answer to this…

If you're happy, your parents are happy, and you're saving money…it's really not for anyone else to judge, at least if they don't have skin in your life.

I was cut off from that sort of arrangement when I was young…maybe 20…but I wasn't doing well in school, I was a slob, I wasn't working hard…my parents, correctly, thought they were enabling me. If you're doing what you need to do, and they're happy, what's the problem?

[StudyNowCPA]

My son is a senior and will start college in 2017. I told him and my younger kids that I want them to stay at home as long as they can. My reason is so they can do exactly what you are doing right now. I told them to stay home as long as possible so they can start their life the right way. The only thing I told them was once you get married you have to move out. As long as they are not married and no kids they are welcome to stay at home and save money as long as they can. If your parents aren't complaining then they are probably ok with you being there. Once they start complaining then I would say move out. It is their home after all.

[ultrarunner]

I don't know where you guys live. Rent price for one bedroom in the Bay Area or Silicon Valley is 2K+/month. It is a norm to live with parents if you can. It is common for young professionals to rent a house or multi-bedroom apartment together to save some money. If you have an option to live with your folks, you are lucky.

FAR 72,67,79 (Roger+Wiley test bank)11/15
AUD 80 (Roger)10/15
BEC 80 (Roger)4/16
REG 63,78 (Roger+Ninja MCQs)5/16

[aspencookie]

I have not moved out and im REALLY REALLY OLD but im not married and in our culture you take care of your parents no matter what. I plan on getting an apt just to have my own space but thats like wasting money because I probably will never be there. My parents are not getting any younger and I plan to take care of them forever. Our family dynamic is different we all have never moved out even at this late age and people think its weird but we are very emotionally dependent on each other and family is very very very important to us maybe thats why none of us ever married or plan to marry. the world looks at us like we are crazy but we are love each other as a family and would do anything for one another and most of all we would take care of our parents till the very end, that is something that is embedded in my fiber as a human being and i will never defy it.
so no there is nothing wrong with living at home.

[StudyNowCPA]

@ultrarunner – Wow, that's crazy. I live in Texas and you can get a one bedroom for about $600 to $1000 a month. The $1000 would be a luxury apartment. The $600 would still be nice. No wonder we are seeing so many people come here from Cali.

[aaronmo]

I think it's crazy that anyone would pay $600-$1000 to live in any part of Texas…Austin excluded from snark. 😛

[CPAcandidate3]

@AspenCookie

No offense but that is a load of bull and is also unhealthy. For one deciding to move out in no way affects that persons basis in how important family is nor does getting married. Second if family is so out of this world important to you why the heck wouldn't you want to grow it? I know you love your parents but forgoing your life experiences isn't necessary in order to achieve that. It's great for them but unfortunately on your way out you won't be getting the same treatment since the family will be ending with you.

Doesn't make any sense to me and seems to be more of excuse for not branching out.

[aaronmo]

^^^ Wondering how you can possibly make that judgement on someone you don't know based on a paragraph from the internet.

Different is just different…and everyone is weird and/or crazy in their way.

[Amortized and Energized]

I wouldn't sweat it OP. Everybody's circumstances are different. Alot of people get places with college friends or or friends in general once finishing school. In my case, all my friends had moved away after school. Then the company I was working for was only 20 minutes away from where I grew up. My parents urged me to stay and save until I could afford a home. Next think I knew, my company was outsourcing work and I had student loans and car payments that needed to be paid still. Didn't know what was around the corner so I paid them both off and was fortunate enough to find a new job. Staying home afforded me the ability to get rid of my debt and be independent and then I was able to head off on my own after saving up a bit more. I paid rent and some of the other monthly expenses at home, but it was lower than what rent would have been “out there”. But at the same time it helped my parents with their mortgage and monthly living expenses. They weren't struggling, but it still helped them and if I am going to be helping pay somebody else's mortgage, I'd rather it be my parents than some real estate investor or landlord that I don't know.

Get your feet under you, help you parents with expenses and then head out. When your 50/55 years old, you're not going to look back and judge yourself for moving out at 24 instead of 22.. or 26 or whatever age it is you leave. To me there is a big difference between staying home because you can't take care of your own laundry, cook or provide for yourself compared to saving/investing so you will be able to do so. That is the difference when I look at it rather than an age.

FAR - Aug 2015 (58), Feb 2016 (81)
u
BEC - May 2016 (79)
AUD - Jul 2016
REG - Aug 2016

[StudyNowCPA]

@aaronmo – Glad to hear you feel that way. Everyone should jump on board with that. We've been bombarded with “relocators” for years now and its safe to say we are at capacity! Please everyone stay where you are! lol *joke of course*

[CPA2BEE]

I moved out when I was 17, moved back in after college for 5 months when I was 22, then moved right back out and will (hopefully) never live with my parents again. You can definitely save MUCH more by staying at mommy & daddy's rent-free, but I was completely miserable when I moved back in after college. I have a great relationship with my parents and love them dearly, but I am always seeking progress in my life and moving back in was a massive step backwards for me after college. Something about it made me feel terrible about myself, even though it was a short 5 months and I knew it was temporary.

I'm the kind of person that wanted to embrace the challenge of going out on my own starting with nothing, bearing through the tough times, and growing on my own. I guess there is nothing wrong with staying in your little safe space until your in your 20s/30s/40s or however old you are, if thats what you want your legacy to be. How many more decades of living at home until you can retire?

FAR - 80
AUD - 82
BEC - 80
REG - 85

ETHICS - 90
EXPERIENCE - COMPLETE
Application for California license mailed 8/4/2016

[bigcore20]

@CPAcandidate3 – Who are you to judge that person? Everyone here has a different culture. You're basically pissing on his culture and calling him stupid / mentally unhealthy for not moving out. God forbid he wants to live with his family for a while still.

@CPA2BEE – Idk if you meant it or not (text is hard to interpret), but your post is really condescending. “your little safe space” , “mommy & daddy's”. You're that exact type of person I was talking about who passively judges someone who hasn't moved out yet. You don't even know these people. Maybe they have a situation like scared_cpa's, or they can't afford to move out at the moment because of various reasons. I really hope you aren't actually the type who judges people like that and thinks of them on a lower level. Why don't you actually talk to these people and learn their situation instead of being a condescending passive douche?

[Accountant183748]

@bigcore20 I agree with what you are saying. I think the post was very condescending and judgmental. Everyone is different and cultures are different and have different traditions – it doesn't mean that one is better than the other. They are just different and we should be understanding of that. Plus, just because you are living with your parents doesn't mean that you aren't helping out or paying rent.

[Jay]

I lived on my own during my twenties and saved a lot of prestige. I tried to use that prestige to buy something and was told it was worthless. I wish I had lived at home during college and after to save money. Cash is king.

Giving up is not an option.

REG 82
FAR 76
Aud 8/31/2016
BEC 11/30/2016

[Amortized and Energized]

Different strokes for different folks. Everyone has a different story. Some people have horrendous home lives growing up and it is completely understandable why they get out ASAP. Some people I can see where it makes sense not to. High cost of living areas.. why live in a dump and pay above your means so you can put on a shiny Independence badge if the option is there to save a bit and then be able to live within your means and more comfortably? A few of my friends and their spouses are struggling to save enough to buy a home with all their monthly expenses.. rent, utilities etc etc. so for the foreseeable future, they will be stuck renting when they'd rather be owning. As I referenced in my post a bit earlier.. I was able to save enough at home to help with my parents expenses and be able to purchase something on my own. Same friends have teased me for a few years about being home with “mommy and daddy”. Nothing malicious, but normal “you still live at home” barbs and jabs to get a laugh here and there, and I'd laugh along with them because it was funny. Now they comment here and there how it would be nice to be at home again just to get them over the hump of where they need to be, to which I've offered them a room with me and they respectfully decline because they like their independence. Understandable

There's also the people who moved out on their own, but their parents pay their rent.Some people had parents that paid for their college and don't have monthly loan bills while others needed to take out loans and that's a significant factor in their monthly expenses that push them towards staying home. I've seen some that have their own place and wind up and Mom and Dad's for dinner 5 nights a week.

FAR - Aug 2015 (58), Feb 2016 (81)
u
BEC - May 2016 (79)
AUD - Jul 2016
REG - Aug 2016

[Author]

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