According to Wells Fargo’s recent Money Study, 64% of parents with Gen Z children say their 18- to 28-year-old kids still rely on them for financial support—whether it’s for housing or other expenses.
Of the 3,773 U.S. adults surveyed at the end of last year, more than half who are parents (56%) said the monetary support they’re extending to their adult children adds a strain on their own finances.
“It’s not surprising that young adults are leaning on both family and nontraditional sources for support, but these dynamics are also putting pressure on parents,” Emily Irwin, Wells Fargo’s head of private wealth planning, said in a press release. “Open communication, clear expectations, and shared planning can help families navigate this stage together.”
Nearly half of the study’s Gen Z respondents described their financial lives as “messy.” Considering the shrinking pool of entry-level jobs, mounting living costs, and high rates of career-related anxiety, “messy” might be a mild descriptor.
On the one hand, parents lending a financial hand to young adults (if they have the means to do so) isn’t new. Many millennials received similar help as they struggled to find entry-level jobs while saddled with student debt during the Great Recession; in fact, many lived at home with their parents for years. With the rise of AI and a radically shifting professional landscape, Gen Zers are now struggling to launch their careers.
Young adults still have a desire to make a future for themselves—they’re just approaching career-building through more nontraditional methods. A third of respondents in the Wells Fargo study said they took on side hustles and extra jobs to earn more income last year.
A Harris Poll survey published in September revealed that more than half (57%) of Gen Z respondents had a side gig, compared to just 21% of baby boomers. Some young adults might prefer the freedom and flexibility that comes with having multiple gigs—but for many it’s not a way of life they necessarily want, but one they need to stay afloat.
Meanwhile, the Wells Fargo study’s findings seem to be resonating with people of all ages.
“As a Gen X mom of Gen Z kids, I watch them navigate a world where the basics cost more than the math ever adds up to,” one consulting professional wrote on LinkedIn.
“As one such ‘Gen Z adult dependent,’ I could easily assure anyone that many of us in this situation are not doing so willingly, and would be happy to work at a steel mill or an entry-level job, if only they still paid for a life, rewarded loyalty, and actually hired,” one recent college grad commented. “To blame the young worker, or their suffering parents, is to ignore the greed that birthed the crisis in question.”
“The system doesn’t work anymore. [Gen Z] can’t move away and live comfortably/normally like previous generations could,” a Reddit user said. “Just like in many other countries, intergenerational homes are going to become the new normal.”
It’s not just Gen Z feeling the weight of economic turbulence and job insecurity, either. “I’m Gen X, married with a child, and my parents still help us out with big purchases,” a consulting professional wrote on LinkedIn. “Because as multiple layoffs, historic inflation, and an affordability crisis has battered my earning power, my parents’ wealth has grown.”