Young people now almost 27 leaving home for the first time

"In 2024, young people in the European Union (EU) left their parents' house at an average age of 26.2 years, while Ireland was at 26.8 years, according to Eurostat, the EU statistics agency. Surprisingly, these numbers have fluctuated only modestly between a low of 26.1 seen six years ago and a high of 26.8 years in 2006. In Ireland, the average age people moved out of home in 2006 - around the peak of the Celtic Tiger - was 25.3 years."

"Europe wide, southern and south eastern Europeans are the oldest leaving the nest, at 31.3 years on average in Croatia, and aged 30 or older in Slovakia, Greece, Italy and Spain. Last year, 9.7pc of young people (aged between 15 and 29) in the EU lived in households where 40pc or more of disposable income went on housing - regarded as the 'overburden' rate. In Ireland that number was significantly lower, at 4.5pc."

"In Greece it was 30.3pc and Denmark recorded 28.9pc. On the opposite side of the spectrum, the rate in Croatia was 2.1pc In some of the countries where young people tend to move out earlier, such as Denmark, the Netherlands, Germany, Sweden and Finland, the housing cost overburden for young people is higher. Countries where young people move out of the parental home later, like Cyprus, Croatia and Italy, tend to report lower levels of housing cost overburden - because households likely have multiple earners, it said. However, in Greece, despite young people leaving home later, the housing cost overburden remains high."

In 2024, young people across the EU left their parents' house at an average age of 26.2 years, while Ireland averaged 26.8 years, per Eurostat. Average leaving ages have varied only modestly since 2006, with Ireland at 25.3 years in 2006. Southern and south-eastern Europe show the latest departures, with Croatia averaging 31.3 years and several countries at 30 or older. Housing cost overburden for young people averaged 9.7% in the EU, but rates vary widely by country, from low levels in Croatia to very high levels in Greece and Denmark.

Read at Irish Independent