Packed to the rafters
Australians are increasingly open to living with extended family to share costs and pool resources, a new report suggests.
AMP research shows that as housing affordability, rate increases and cost-of-living pressures bite, more than half of Australians (55 per cent) say we should embrace multigenerational living – where extended families live together to share costs and support loved ones through financial challenges.
Support for multigenerational living is strongest among younger Australians, with 68 per cent of 20–39-year-olds in favour – compared with fewer than two in five Australians aged 65 and over – pointing to a generational shift in expectations around independence, home ownership and how families support each other.
The data also suggests the strongest support comes from Australians who find financial pressures hardest to absorb alone: 61 per cent of single Australians support the model, compared with just over half of partnered Australians. Women are also more supportive than men (58 per cent vs 52 per cent).
The changing view of younger generations reflects a broader generational wealth divide. AMP analysis has previously found older households - particularly Baby Boomers - have benefited most from decades of strong asset price growth, especially in housing, while younger Australians have faced a much tougher path into homeownership, as affordability is now a major constraint to home ownership.
That divide has been reinforced by rising home prices and persistent housing supply constraints, which have lifted wealth for established owners while making housing less affordable for younger households. Against that backdrop, it is not surprising more Australians are becoming open to multigenerational living as a practical way to share costs, pool resources and build security.
Openness to intergenerational living may also reflect adopted views from Australia’s growing multicultural society. Nearly one-third of Australians were born overseas (31.5 per cent)3, and almost half have at least one parent born overseas (36.7 per cent one parent; plus 11.5 per cent both parents).
AMP’s Director of Retirement Ben Hillier remarked that as housing pressures intensify and Australia becomes increasingly multicultural, younger Australians are rethinking what the ‘Australian dream’ looks like.
“For many, support is no longer just about the ‘Bank of Mum and Dad’ – it’s about the ‘House of Mum and Dad’; with extended families open to sharing housing, costs and care in more practical ways”, Hillier said.
“This shift also tells us something important about confidence for retirement, which in Australia has long been tied to home ownership. Alongside super, Australians’ sense of financial security will increasingly be shaped by the household around them – how families live, what support they can provide one another, and how costs and care are shared.”
Hiller suggests three things for families to keep in mind:
1. Start the conversation early: AMP research has highlighted that wealth and financial support can still be difficult topics for families to discuss openly. Starting the conversation early can help everyone better understand what support may be possible, and what is realistic.
2. Be clear about expectations: If multigenerational living is on the table, it helps to talk through how costs, responsibilities and day-to-day arrangements might work in practice. Being upfront early can help avoid tension later.
3. Think longer term: Shared living may help ease immediate cost-of-living pressure, but it can also be an opportunity to strengthen longer-term stability. For some families, that could mean more breathing room, more flexibility and greater confidence about the future.