Lived with my parents for a period of about 5 years between 26–30ish during which I went to law school and also after when I started working. Before that time, I’d lived away from home for about 6 years (excluding summers). It made sense financially when I was in school and also during my 10-month legal internship (well-paid, but you only have about a 50% chance of being hired back as a lawyer, so it was tough to plan ahead).

After I learned I would be hired back to my firm (wheee!) the calculus then shifted to clearing debt and saving for a down payment on a condo. At that point it made sense to live at home a bit longer to accelerate the savings with the goal of buying a small condo in ~1–2 years. Moving out in the interim would significantly diminish the ability to save (one-bedrooms are around $1300-$1600 / month) and also meant I’d have to move twice in two years (THE WORST).

A few things that made it manageable:

• There was plenty of room in the house, and my parents were very happy to have me around (or so they say). While I had elements of freeloading (home-cooked meals, the best), I did my own laundry, grabbed groceries, and paid for weekly family meals out.
• I moved out for two summers (total, 8 months) by subletting a room closer to work/downtown /friends. I highly recommend the temporary sublet option for (working) folks . It is a low stakes way of getting away without breaking the bank by paying for rent all year.
• THE SAVINGS! I saved a boatload of money during this time. I did not spend like a drunken sailor on shore leave, like the Toronto Life guy. This only works as a plan if you’re actually saving the money you would have otherwise paid in rent. My parents are amazing and wouldn’t accept rent, but they would NOT have accepted reckless spending made possible by them making space for me at home. It went towards having a healthy pile of money towards a down payment.

You’ll see there were some mental gymnastics to justify my time at home, and I know I’m VERY lucky my parents had the means and generosity to welcome me back, and that our relationship was overall very positive. I did feel occasionally embarrassed about it at the time and it cramped my socializing (which, to be honest, was more impacted by working all the time). I think ‘living at home’ is socially more acceptable when you’re a female.

And to just go to show that nothing ever goes according to plan, I didn’t end up buying a condo. I met a lovely fellow, moved into his apartment, and then into another rental together with adequate closet space for me. Shared rent is very manageable and allows us to sock away money for ‘the future’ (retirement, downpayment, etc.)