I left for college at the age of 18 but I guess my “official” leaving in terms of no longer being financially dependent on my parents was at the age of 26. I lived with them for a couple of years in between college and law school where I actually had a job that would have allowed me to get my own place-but for me it was actually quasi-culturally unacceptable to not live with your parents when you’re all in the same city and the kid is unmarried. That and I ended up saving a ton of money for grad school.
I still list my parents as my permanent address, though.
After freshman year of college, I went home to work my old job.
After sophomore year at college, I stayed that summer, got an apartment and a job on campus. So, it would have been at that point. Man, those were some GREAT summers.
My parents, who I have a great relationship with, made one thing very clear: I should NEVER expect to live at home again. So I planned accordingly - in hindsight it was smart of them to be so clear…
I moved out for good when I got married. I was 24. I lived at home during college and commuted about 45 mins. Actually carpooled with my dad the first two years as he worked about 10 mins from the college. After college, I lived part time in town at my boyfriend’s place and part time at home until we got married.
I had/have a good relationship with my parents and we were able to live under the same roof fairly easily. They respected I was an adult and I respected it was their house and they were still my parents. I was financially independent from them except that I didn’t pay rent. They wouldn’t let me. I did buy food and do stuff for them all the time, though.
In order to save money, I lived at home while I went to college. The college I attended was only 25 miles from home. I got married three months after graduating college, and lived at home until then. I was 22.
The last time I really lived at home was the summer between my sophomore and junior years of college. My parents did give me a bit of financial support all the way through grad school, although I largely financed that through a fellowship and work.
I love my parents and I’m close to them, but we have a much better relationship now then when I was living at home.
When I was 17 I went off to my first semester of college about forty miles from home. I lived in a dormitory there. Back at home, dad rented out my room to a college student who went to the college right down the street.
It’s not as bad as it sounds; during the first couple summers I stayed in either my brother’s old room or my dad’s old room, as the other bedrooms were rented out. Then he rented out the whole house, and that was the end of that.
I also stayed at my mom’s house for short periods of time when I was in between housing situations. Never for more than a few months. And in mom’s case, she really, really wanted me to live with her.
Same here. I lived at home until I was 26.5 (last October) except for a brief stint in a college dorm for one semester in 1997.
Then, I bought a house roughly 200 yards away, in the same neighborhood. I see them almost every day because they are totally attached to my dog and I take her over to their house after work.
My brother is 28, he still lives at home. Doesn’t pay rent either but he doesn’t eat there much. Spends most of his time at his girlfriend’s.
My parents are totally cool and have always said we could live with them as long as we wanted. Their parents were kind of weird and they were kicked out at early ages and so in turn they baby us a little - don’t want what happened to them to happen to us.
We all basically lived like roommates. Respect eachothers’ privacy and sleep schedules, helped with cleaning and groceries, and followed the “house rules.” I only moved out because I was feeling cramped in our small house with 4 adults and a big dog. And it was costing me too much $$ in gas to have to go to my boyfriends’ houses all the time
I lived at college but I was still financially dependent on my parents and went home on weekends and summers. When I graduated (at 21) I moved in with my SO at the time. I was semi-financially and pretty much totally logistically (as in, car rides to work and other places) dependent on HIM, though, so I don’t know if that counts.
When I was 23 (last spring) I moved to the city and got a job within the month and am now totally financially and logistically independent. So, I’d say then.
My step-mom basically forced me out of the house my Freshman year in college. I had two choices: Start paying rent ( I was already going to school and working full time, paying for all of my own tuition, books, car, gasoline, and most of my own food), or move out. She was shocked when I told her I would be out the door in less than two days…I was.
It was good for me, but tougher financially. I lived with a friend for awhile, which helped. I did learn to be very frugal, which still comes in very handy.
During my major fuckup years, I got tossed out of the house – that would have been when I was…mmmm…23 or so? I spent that summer traveling and having myself a grand old time. When my mother found out that whatever lesson she was trying to teach me about the world being a harsh place was failing miserably, she invited me to move back.
I more or less straightened myself up after that, and eventually got a place with the woman I could come to marry when I was 28.
I had to escape from my father. At 16, I was playing in a band and living away from home, and in the spring of 1976 the band folded and I was out of work. So, reluctantly, I went home, to find that my mother had taken the kids and escaped from him, too. I never even saw the inside of the house again.
I effectively left home after the summer of my sophomore year. I spent the next two summers at college, paid for by my on-campus job. After my senior year I spent most of that summer at the college as well, then went on to grad school. So, except for a month between undeergrad and graduate school, I never spent more than a week at a time my parents’ house after my sophomore year.
I was in and out due to college dorms and whatnot, but I finally got my own place and stopped being financially dependent starting a couple of weeks before I turned 22.
Oh, and as for why… well, I was an adult. Or wanted to be one, at any rate. And adults don’t live at home. Plus my parents’ house is really not large enough for four people, it was quite crowded when I was in high school after my sister was born. And I want to write and I spend at least an hour a day doing so and my parents’ house is not conducive to that, my parents leave the TV on 24/7 so there is noise all the time. Plus my parents live in a small town and I will never be able to drive, so no job. There’s scads of reasons why I left. I went home last weekend for a visit and was reminded of even more reasons why.
Then again, according to my parents I am still not an adult because I don’t drive and I cry sometimes. So I guess I am a failure even if I did launch.
Had gone and lived in off-campus housing when I was in university, but came back on the weekends, and then moved in with the folks again while looking for a job in the programming field, and while attending an expensive but good IT training institute.
When my program at the institute was coming to a close, Mom told me in very few uncertain terms that I’d have to me moving out soon… the house was too much upkeep, my dad had gone back into hospital and we all pretty much knew he wouldn’t be coming out again, and she wanted to put the place up for sale and get a condo that would be just for her.
And that’s what happened. Luckily, I got a good job less than 2 weeks after my program finished, and there was a small, cheap, reasonably nice apartment opening up at a major bus route intersection where I’d already been transferring to catch the bus to the office. Mom lent me the money for the first&last deposit on the rent, (which I paid back a few months later,) and I moved in two or three weeks after starting the job.
That was 5 years ago this month. Still working for the same company, Still living in the same apartment. The job’s moved, so I now need to take several buses again. (sighs)
