Leaving home: Living arrangements of young people in six west-European countries

The timing with which young people leave their parents' home is a critical element in household formation rates. Direct data on this transition are scarce. Information on the current living arrangements of 16–24 year-olds collected in a 1982 EEC Survey provides some insights. The data suggest quite large cross-national variations in the timing of leaving home and particularly marked differences in the living arrangements of young people. Reasons for the variation, particularly housing-market differences, are postulated.