More young women are living with their parents or relatives now than in 1940

So much for an empty nest.

According to a new analysis by the Pew Research Center, a larger share of young women are now living at home with their parents or relatives than at any time in the past 70 years.

Looking at new data from the US Census Bureau, Pew researcher Richard Fry found a sharp rise in the percentage of young adults aged 18-34 moving back in with their parents in 2000, after decades of a slow rise. 

But it was highest among one group in particular: Women.

The rate of men moving back in with parents and other relatives is also on an upward trend, with about 42.8% of men ages 18-34 moving home as of 2014 (compared with 47.5% in 1940), but only the rate for women (36.4% in 2014) has eclipsed its 1940s figure of 36.2%. 

The data show young adults were the most independent in the 1960s, when only about 24% of men and women lived at home. Here's how the trend played out:

Fry told The New York Times that what he found most puzzling is that number of men and women opting to live at home is still going up despite being years from the Great Recession of 2008, considering how many jobs there are for young adults compared to right when the recession hit. "I'm still struggling with the economic explanation, since the labor market for young adults has improved in the last five years, and yet the percentage living with their family is still going up," he told The Times. "It seems to be somewhat decoupled from economics."Men and women are also getting married later in life, with the median age of first marriage for men 29, and women 27, which likely contributes to the number of young adults choosing to stay with family instead of living independently. 

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