Pandemic Shifts People’s Housing Situations

The coronavirus pandemic has impacted all of our lives in different ways, and for many Americans, their housing situation has seen a shift.

A recent Stannah survey of more than 1,000 people found that 51.6% of respondents reported that their living situation had been impacted due to COVID-19, with 29.4% of people moving in with family during this time period. Not surprising, people in their 20s were most likely to move in with family during the pandemic, at 40.8% of respondents. At the time of the survey, nearly 90% of people who moved in with family said they still remained there.

Most people said they moved in with family to save money (57.2%), but 47.9% said they were helping family financially, and 40.6% said they were living together to get through the pandemic. More than one-third replied that they had wanted company during stay-at-home and quarantine phases and 29.4% said they were moving to get out of a coronavirus hot spot.

More than 77% of respondents reported moving in with their parents, while 34.5% moved in with siblings and 22% moved in with their children. However, it wasn’t always a cost-saver to the mover, as 54% of people said they were still paying a rent or mortgage on other housing payment, despite not living in that residence.

Yet, more than half of respondents (54.3%) said their mental health was positively impacted by moving in with their family, and 51.9% said it strengthened their family bond.

“Our study recently found that a majority of people who moved in with family during the pandemic are also working remotely (54%),” said Martin Stevenson, head of marketing in North America for Stannah. “We’re also noticing older generations stay put and elect to modify their homes rather than risk moving to senior housing or assisted living. Overall, with so much uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 virus and combined with the upcoming election, we’ve truly yet to see the long-term effects of the pandemic on the economy and the housing market.”

Regardless of what people choose to do – move in with family or stay put – respondents were confident they had made the right choice. Of those who didn’t move in with family, 92.3% said they had made the right decision, while 88.8% of those who did move in with family felt they had made the right call.