Households accommodating three generations are on the increase as elderly people struggle to make ends meet on their own, research showed today.
More than 850,000 adults now have one or both of their parents living with them – in 4% of all households with an adult aged between 34 and 64, according to retirement housing specialist Economic Lifestyles.
The group blamed the trend on rising council tax and heating bills, which on top of the cost of maintaining a home is making it more expensive for elderly people to live on their own.
It added that the failing health of many older people also meant it was easier for them to live with their children.
People aged between 35 and 44 are most likely to have their parents living with them, and there are more three-generation households in this category than in all the other age groups combined.
The research found that as the age of the homeowner rises, the number of people who have elderly parents living with them falls.
But despite this, there were around 148,000 people aged between 55 and 64 who still had one or both parents living with them.
Mark Neal, managing director of Economic Lifestyle, said: « Retired people struggle by on average incomes of around £11,000 and many are even still paying off mortgages. Around one in five pensioners lives below the poverty line.
« Financially it makes sense for them to go back to live with their adult children who may be reasonably well-off and able to help them just as they were supported by their parents while they were growing up.
« However, it is the case that three generations of a family living under the same roof can lead to tensions.
« Many families will be happy to have their parents come to live with them but for others it is an arrangement forced on them by financial necessity. »
People in the North and London are most likely to have their parents living with them, at 8% and 7% of households respectively.
At the other end of the scale, just 2% of households in the West Midlands and 3% in the South West have three generations under the same roof.
Our response
Gordon Lishman, Director General, Age Concern England, commented:
« It is worrying that older people feel that they cannot afford to live independently. Many pensioners live on a low, fixed income and are hit particularly hard by hikes in their fuel bills or Council Tax.
“If older people are struggling on a low income, they should find out whether they are entitled to state benefits. Older people are more likely than any other age group to miss out on benefits cash, £2.9bn of which went unclaimed last year.
“Chronic under-funding of care at home means older people can be denied basic services like help with shopping and grab rails, which can make or break an older persons independence.
“The Government should increase the state pension so that pensioners have enough money to cover basic living costs.”
Note: BRMB questioned 1,025 people aged between 35 and 64 and 428 people aged over 65 during August.
source: Age Concern – UK
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