Why do Italians live with their parents as adults? Here are the reasons why they can’t afford to live alone
Young people who still live with mum and dad after they come of age and sometimes even adulthood often call them “big boys”. Abroad, above all, society tends to wonder why Italians don’t want to leave the family nest. They often attribute this phenomenon to theto be mammons or being tied too much to the family.
It is not the first time, in fact, that those who do not live in Italy see Italians, especially men, as too much “mama-lovers”, unable to become adults because mom is more important to them of a possible couple relationship. In reality, many single Italians stay with their parents for purely economic reasons.
Anyone who lives in the Bel Paese knows very well the difficulties that young people have to face economically, especially if single. In fact, Italians often abandon the roof of the family once achieved stability of the pair. This happens for a series of reasons that only those who live in the boot know.
Why do you stay with mum and dad in Italy? The situation in Milan
Despite the distorted view of Italians abroad who still live with their parents, Euronews tackles the issue through some interviews with natives of the Belpaese who are over 25 years old. These young people replied that despite their high educational qualifications, salaries in Italy are not higheven in the presence of many work references.
One of the interviewees told of living in Milan in a shared apartment, but it is very rare to find it e especially at a good price in many cities. “I’m 29 years old – says a boy – I have a master’s degree and I work in the sector in which I studied at university[…]. People my age can’t afford the rent, let alone a house of their own.”
Cities like Milan, for example, they are very expensive not only for rentals, but also for home purchase mortgages. The Italian city is in fact one of the most expensive in Italy. Among those interviewed there is also a 35-year-old single, who lives and works in the Lombard capital, but she lives with her grandmother because the rents cost more than 800 euros a month. However, it is very common to live with parents or other relatives also in the rest of Italy, due to the rent situation remains the same relationship to salaries.
The problem in seaside resorts
In several tourist locations in Italy, including in Sardinia, on the coasts of Puglia, Emilia Romagna and Sicily and other regions, rents are on average lower than in Milan, but they are often seasonal. This phenomenon is very evident in coastal towns in Sardinia and that means during the summer there are no apartments for rent. Here the fees, in the absence of a law that regulates them, triple during the three months of high season.
As a result, those who live in these localities cannot afford to live alone all year round and the owners only offer them seasonal contracts. According to a recent survey by Idealista, Olbia, Sardinia is on the list of the cities with the highest rents. The requirements are also not very permissive for many young people. “We do not rent to those who have children or pets at home”, according to the requests of many owners to tenants. On Subito.it, for example, out of 114 rental announcements (in May), almost all rent only seasonally.
The Sardinian city, according to an estimate by Tecnocasa on January data, has seen for this reason a increase in home purchases. However, only those with references for the granting of mortgages or loans can buy a house. In conclusion, leaving mom and dad’s house is a rather complicated journey for young people in Italy, especially when single.