Still in the nest up to their 30s
Most Greeks choose to stay with their parents until they get into their fourth decade in life
Most young people today in Greece leave the family home after the age of 30, a phenomenon that is increasingly related not to the prevailing mentality of the Greek family, but to the ever-increasing cost of housing.
It is no coincidence, after all, that Greece, both in the general population and in the 15-29 age group, shows the highest percentage among the member countries of the European Union of those who spend more than 40% of their income on housing costs.
The term “housing costs” includes not only the rent, but also the so-called fixed costs (cost of electricity, water supply, central heating and even municipal fees), while in the case of owned housing, in addition to the fixed costs, there are also the costs for loan installments and insurance coverage.
According to data for 2023 announced by Eurostat on Monday, the average age of Greeks when they leave their parental home to live alone is 30.6 years, at the same level as in 2022. This is the third highest age recorded among the EU-27 after Croatians, who leave at 31.8 years, and Slovakians, who leave at 31.
Notably, on average in the 27 EU members, young people leave the parental home to live away from their their parents at the age of 26.3 on average. Based on gender, it should be noted that there are differences: In Greece the average age at which women leave the parental home is 28.8 years, with men leaving considerably later, at 32.2. This differentiation exists throughout the EU, although on average the difference between the two sexes is smaller: at 25.7 years for women and 27.2 for men.
Although Greece has historically had one of the highest average ages for leaving the parental home, it has only been above 30 years in the last three years.
In fact, while in 2019 a decline had begun, falling below 29 years for the first time in eight years, it went back up to 29.6 years in 2020 – possibly due to the pandemic – and since 2021 it has remained consistently above 30 years.
