Study Finds Nearly Half of Young Adults Rely on Parents for Financial Help

Millennials have an undeserved reputation as moochers—and a new study does little to turn that tired stereotype on its head. In fact, the latest Fidelity Investments Millennial Money Study shows that while young adults are into the idea of financial freedom, nearly half of them haven't been able to declare their independence from mom and dad.

According to the study, released this week, 47 percent of millennials have let their parents pay for some items—think: their cell phone bills, groceries, utilities, or even their Hulu subscription—since they flew the coop, so to speak. One in five millennials have let their parents pay for two or more of these items in the recent past.

And, what's more, here's the real whopper: 21 percent are still living with their parents, up from just 14 percent last year when Fidelity conducted its last millennial study.

Even if they're on their own now, 25 percent of millennials say they did have to go back to mom and dad at some point for financial help. And 67 percent of the study's 615 adults—305 of them millennials—agree it's more acceptable for adults to move back in with their parents than it used to be.

Of course, we can't give millennials too tough of a time if they need to mooch off mom and dad in order to stock up on savings. After all, millennials are making less money than any other generation, other research has shown, and by moving back home, they're presumably avoiding wracking up credit card debt.

In fact, this study shows that 85 percent of millennials have some form of savings—up from 77 percent last year—and 59 percent of these young adults have an average of $9,100 in emergency funds. That's more than both Gen X and Baby Boomers have socked away for a disaster day. And that's very good for millennials.

"Developing sound savings habits at an early age provides a number of big advantages," Kristen Robinson, senior vice president of Fidelity Investments, says in a statement. "The impact of saving early and consistently is powerful, whether for short-term goals like buying a car or booking a dream vacation or for larger goals like buying a home or saving for retirement."

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Source: http://www.glamour.com/story/how-much-do-your-parents-help-you-get-by