How much should you be charging YOUR boomerang child? Calculator reveals parents should demand as much as £900 rent from adult offspring who move back in
- Number of young adults living with parents increased by a quarter in 20 years
- So it comes as no surprise that parents often want to charge their offspring
- One calculator promises to help work out just how much parents should ask for
With the number of young adults living with their parents soaring by more than a quarter in two decades, it comes as no surprise that many mothers and fathers want to start charging their offspring rent.
And one calculator, by comparethemarket.com, promises to help work out just how much parents should ask for, using figures from the Office of National Statistics for average rent and food costs, and the site’s data on gas and electricity prices.
The numbers – which show the rent calculations per person, per month – differ depending on the area in which the parent lives, and surprisingly London is not the most expensive.
In fact, the cost of food and utilities in Edinburgh means that parents should be asking their offspring to cough up £890 a month, compared to £789 in London.
The figures came to light this week when the calculator was shared to Mumsnet, and parents joked that they would love to see their children’s faces if they charged them the going rate.
With the number of young adults living with their parents soaring by more than a quarter in two decades, it comes as no surprise that some mothers and fathers want to charge their offspring (stock photo)
The estimate for a city centre postcode in Edinburgh estimated that adult children should be charged a whopping £891.28, while in Leeds, they should be expected to pay £491.57.
Meanwhile, a Birmingham city centre postcode saw an estimated fee of £533.32 for those living with their parents, as Cardiff reached a cost of £670.84.
Out of the major UK cities, it was Leeds that proved the cheapest for young adults wanting to stay with their parents, coming in at an estimated £491.57.
The number of 20 to 34-year-olds living with their parents in the UK increased from 2.7million to 3.4million between 1998 and 2017, a rise of 26 per cent, according to think-tank Civitas.
And comparethemarket.com claims 53 per cent of parents now charge their children to stay at home.
Chris King, head of home insurance at comparethemarket.com, said: ‘With the cost of living increasing year on year, we’re not surprised that more than half of parents are charging their adult children to live at home with them, not only from a financial perspective but also to help teach them the true value of money.
‘Three quarters of parents fed back that there isn’t enough information on how much you can legitimately charge your child to live at home with you.
‘With this insight, we wanted to create a handy calculator tool so parents can see just how much the cost of rent, electricity, gas and food bills could cost in every local area around the UK.’
On Monday, one Mumsnet user posted a link to the calculator and asked her fellow parents from across the UK about their opinions regarding the pricing.
On Monday, one Mumsnet user found a calculator which claimed to workout out how much adult children should pay if they live at home
Dozens of people responded to the post and were quick to discover whether their relatives were paying enough
‘Just found this ‘how much rent could you charge your kids’ calculator!’ a user named Cruelstepmother queried.
‘They suggested my cuckoo-back-in-the-nest stepson should be paying us £593.80 a month. What are your views?’
Dozens of people responded to the post and were quick to discover whether their relatives were paying enough.
One wrote: ‘Just done my parents postcode and it says £560. My sister complains about paying them £200 for absolutely everything (my dad makes her packed lunch and wakes her up every day).’
Another said: ‘£885 a month where I am. Would love to see the look on my daughter’s face if I asked for that!’
Yet not everyone was in agreement with the calculator’s figures, with one parent insisting they were happy to charge less and have their son save for a house deposit
While a third joked: ‘£1025 – DC not yet adults or earning! Planning early retirement now!’
Yet not everyone was in agreement with the calculator’s figures, with one parent insisting they were happy to charge less and have their son save for a house deposit.
‘£582.76 for my post code,’ one Mumsnet user wrote. ‘DS pays £250 plus 25 per cent share of council tax.
‘I’m happy with that he is saving for a house deposit and whilst I buy main meal food and basics, he sorts his own lunches and any extras.’
Another insisted: ‘£725 here! We actually charge our recently returned 24-year-old daughter the princely sum of…0. Nothing. Nada.
‘Can’t imagine treating our children like a blooming lodger.’
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