Who is receiving financial transfers from family during young adulthood in Australia?

Abstract

Parents are increasingly providing financial support to their adult children. At the same time, it is often taking young people into their 30s to convert educational credentials into career outcomes, establish independent households, and marry or form partnerships. While the role of the so-called ‘bank of mum and dad’ in assisting with entry into home ownership is well established, its effects are potentially far wider, for example affecting young adults’ employment pathways. This article contributes to emerging research on extended intergenerational support using longitudinal data from Australia to explore which young people are receiving this support during their 20s and into their early 30s. Drawing on our findings, we contend that financial transfers as people enter their mid-20s and beyond appear to be used both to manage hardship and precarity, and to enable speculation on positive employment futures.