Dear Amy: I’m in my early 20s and living at home. I’m paying my parents rent, but the money I pay doesn’t include anything else – just the room.
This doesn’t seem fair to me, and I’d really appreciate hearing what you think of this.
– Renter at Home
Dear Renter: You’ve just described … rent. When you rent, you pay the owner of the dwelling for the roof over your head. That’s all.
Once you accept this reality, you should do some research to see if you are able to afford rent and living expenses elsewhere. You may find that – even without the extras – you are benefiting from the lower cost of living at home.
Many young people use this transition period at home as a way to aggressively save money toward the higher cost of living elsewhere.