PenPenWrites

Here's a twist on refilling the empty nest. In these tough economic times, families are piling in together to cut costs, but it isn't always kids moving back to have mom and dad help them out. The kids may move back in to help out with the parent's rent. Here's the recent story:

"Last year, Kanessa Tixe’s dad had just finished building a
three-family house when he lost his superintendent job in February. He
wasn’t sure how to make the $5,000-a-month mortgage on the new house in
Queens, N.Y.

So Tixe and her siblings decided to help out in an unusual way: They
moved in. In December, her father moved into the first floor; her
stepsister and husband moved into the second floor; and her stepbrother
and Tixe took the third floor. The entire family has become roommates,
banding together to pay rent and help their dad with the mortgage until
he finds long-term tenants."

Sign of the times?

Here are the stats to watch: According to the U.S. Census Bureau, In 1915, the average number of people sharing a home, including
parents, offspring, and “extended squatters,” was 4.5. By 2006, that number had shrunk by nearly half to 2.6. By 2010–who can say what that number will be. And how many of us will be inviting our kids home to help out with the overhead.