International Real Estate Review

Abstract

Previous studies have rarely discussed the phenomenon of financially independent married young adults who live with their parents in Asia. This study examines the determinants of living with parents for married young adults who are the main financial provider by using samples of households at the national and regional levels (six municipal regions) in Taiwan. The empirical results reveal that housing affordability is a key factor for why married young adults continue to live with their parents. Due to concerns around housing affordability, married young adults are 1.3 times more likely to live with their parents in Taipei City which is the least affordable city in Taiwan, as opposed to those who do not have concerns around housing affordability as is the case for Tainan City, which is the most affordable region, in which the likelihood is only 1.07. While the education level of married young adults has a significantly positive effect on living with their parents in the Taipei metropolitan area, the opposite is true in the central and southern cities of Taiwan. An increase in the number of pre-school children will increase the likelihood of living with parents, except in Taipei City. The differences might be caused by the differences in the housing and labor markets in the examined cities. Furthermore, an increase in the number of co-residing grandparents or those who have more than one owner-occupied house will increase the probability of living with parents. The variables in this study might be also affected by the influence of traditional family culture and family wealth on the nest- leaving decision of married young adults.