Several generations are now forced to live in one house

12/08/2011

The paralyzing cost of living is said to be the reason the number of generations living in the same house is rising.

Official figures show a 27 per cent jump in families living together – such as grandparents, grandchildren and great grandparents all living under the same roof – just like the U.S hit TV show The Waltons.

The research carried out by Findaproperty.com, said: ‘Multi-generational living has returned to Britain.’

In 2001 only 187,000 families were living this way – with three generations under one roof, sometimes even four.

Ten years later, it has risen to 238,000, a jump of 27 per cent. The numbers also include two different families living together.

When asked why so many generations lived in the same house the most common reason cited was ‘I like being close to my family'.

Although, the second reason was ‘for financial reasons,’ with a third of people citing this as their primary reason.

Many young people are currently struggling to move out of the family home, unable to afford or obtain mortgages. Plus house rises have jumped to such high proportions that many can’t afford to buy.

Another reason for this is the cost of child care which can be helped by having family members close by.

Childcare bills can be costly with the cost of a nanny in central London averaging £32,300 year.

Samantha Baden, an analyst at FindaProperty.com, part of a digital division of the Daily Mail and General Trust, said Britons are playing ‘happy families’.

She said: ‘It seems that old-fashioned family values are back in vogue as children, parents, grandparents and, in some cases, great-grandparents, choose to live together under the same roof.’

Tags; Housing Debt and Bills, Income Worries and Debt, Young Family Finances,

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