Household formation and living arrangements of the youth in Iran: Evidence of delay in the transition to independent living

The formation of new household by the youth is an important stage in the household life cycle and is interpreted as transition to adulthood. The main aim of this study is to investigate living arrangements of the youth in Iran, and to identify the trends and factors affecting on young headship rate. To meet this objective, data for the youth aged 15-29 years old during 1984-2016 were analyzed. The results showed that as compared with previous decades children are spending more time in their parent’s home evident by the fact that 50% of boys and girls had not left parents' home until age 27.8 and 21.7 respectively. Most of the households with young head were nuclear households. The percentage of single parent households and married couples without child has been on the rise while the percentage of one-person- and extended households have experienced a decline during the period. The probability of young headship is influenced by such factors as area of residence, marital status and employment at the individual level, cohort welfare status in the cohort level and rising housing costs, youth unemployment and an increase in mean age at marriage for men in the period level. The results confirm that independent living costs play a crucial role in the formation of new households by young people. Moreover, the religious and cultural structure of the Iranian society to keep children in the parents' home until marriage has been a major factor in the delay of leaving parents' home.