More older Millennials are now living with their relatives - and the numbers continue to climb, as experienced youngsters take work from recession-scarred thirtysomethings

  • The number of 26-to-36-year-olds living at home is at 20%; in 2012 it was 17%
  • But the number of 18-to-25-year-olds at home has dropped to 59.8% from 61.1% 
  • This despite the United States having record low unemployment levels of 4.1%
  • This suggests twentysomethings are leaving home, unlike thirtysomethings
  • Experts say that's because the older group entered workforce after recession
  • They couldn't find work, or took jobs they were overqualified for
  • That's left younger people with better experience willing to work for less 

New data shows that the number of 26-to-34-year-olds living with relatives has hit a high of 20 per cent and continues to climb.

The figure is up from 17 per cent in 2012, despite a record low unemployment rate of 4.1 per cent - the lowest in 17 years.

That may be because older Millennials, who entered the workforce around the 2008 crash, were unable to the work experience now afforded to the younger members of their cohort, USA Today reported.

Millennials aged 26-35 are struggling to leave home compared with their 18-25 counterparts, new statistics show, and experts blame the recession for damaging resumes (stock photo)

Millennials aged 26-35 are struggling to leave home compared with their 18-25 counterparts, new statistics show, and experts blame the recession for damaging resumes (stock photo)

The number of younger Millennials - in the 18-25 age bracket - that are living with their parents is higher in total, at 59.8 per cent.

But that figure has dropped since 2012, when it was 61.1 per cent - unlike with their Millennial elders.

And that, says Trulia - a real estate search firm that published the figures - is because they were the ones hit hardest by the economic downturn between 2007-2009.

'That was a tough time to establish your career and gain work experience,' said Trulia's chief economist, Ralph McLaughlin.

With a lack of opportunities available, many were unable to find work - leaving their resumes bare.

Others took jobs for which they were overqualified, limiting the amount of experience that they were able to gain for their future careers.

But younger Millennials have enjoyed a more buoyant jobs market that has allowed them to flourish.

In early 2007, before the recession, 8.7 per cent of 18-to-25-year-olds had no job compared to 4.7 per cent of 26-34-year-olds.

Today the younger group is at 7.8 per cent while the older group is still at 4.7 per cent. That's the smallest difference since 1962, when such records began. 

Younger Millennials came of age in a more buoyant job market, helping them get better experience earlier on in their careers. Pictured: Jobseekers at a career fair in June

Younger Millennials came of age in a more buoyant job market, helping them get better experience earlier on in their careers. Pictured: Jobseekers at a career fair in June

In the present day, that's left the older group looking like poorer prospects for employers than younger Millennials, who may have comparable levels of experience, but are younger and more willing to work for less.

'That scarring, of not being able to get that experience after graduation, is very harmful,' Elise Gould, senior economist at the Economic Policy Institute, explained. 

That has left more older Millennials stuck at home, unable to get together the money to strike out on their own, Gould said.

That's resulted in the trend for staying at home that rose dramatically in the recession staying the same in the years since - largely because of older Millennials staying put while younger Millennials find their own pads.

In total, 34.8 per cent of 18-to-34-year-olds live with family, compared with 28.7 per cent in 1962.

Other factors - such as the burden of student loans, and Millennials staying at home so they can afford to save up for a house - are in play, Gould and McLaughlin said.

But in most cases, they say, the recession drop is to blame for disadvantaged older Millennials. 

Older Millennials with spottier resumes now look less attractive to employers than younger one who have more experience. Student debt is also keeping people at home (pictured: student debt protesters in 2015)

Older Millennials with spottier resumes now look less attractive to employers than younger one who have more experience. Student debt is also keeping people at home (pictured: student debt protesters in 2015)