More young Cypriot men still live with their parents than women

Cyprus has a high number of young people living with their parents, a new Eurostat report has revealed. Around 83 per cent of men and 69 per cent of women aged 16 to 29 live at home on the island.

The numbers were high in all EU countries for teenagers aged 16 to 19, as the vast majority of people in secondary education remain living with their parents. Only in one member state was the share below 90 per cent, the UK, and even there it was 89.3 per cent. Cyprus had the third highest percentage in 2017, with 99.2 per cent, just behind Italy’s 99.6 per cent and Croatia with 99.3 per cent.

On average, the share of young people aged 16 to 29 living with their parents was 68.2 per cent in the EU. For young men the figure was 73.3 per cent, while for young women it was 62.9, a gap of 10.4 percentage points.

The largest number of people aged 16 to 29 living with their parents was recorded in Croatia, 93.1 per cent of men and 82.3 per cent of women. The lowest percentages for both sexes were recorded in Denmark, 39.5 per cent for young men and 31.9 per cent for young women.

In every EU member state, the proportion of young women living in the parental home was lower than that of young men. The largest gender gaps were observed in Bulgaria (19.3 percentage points (pp)) and Romania (17.2 pp), while the lowest were recorded in Sweden (4.7 pp) and Malta (4.6 pp). Though no precise data were published regarding Cyprus, a graph shows the gender gap is around 14 percentage points.

Cyprus is not among the countries with the highest number of young women and men aged from 20 to 24 staying with their parents, probably because at this age a substantial number study abroad.

However, more than 50 per cent still live with their families when they are 25 to 29 years old, a number slightly above the EU average.

CM