Drawbacks of Multigenerational Living

There are plenty of advantages when it comes to a multigenerational home, but is it the right choice for your family? Sure, it sounds appealing to potentially save on monthly living expenses and have more interaction with loved ones, but there can sometimes be some drawbacks to multigenerational living. 

Less Privacy

While multigenerational homes are often set up in a way that makes them conducive to more privacy, others feel a multigenerational setup offers less privacy. Because you are no longer under more than one roof, you will probably share some space in the home. Different family members may have different wings of a home or their own “suite”, but there are still shared walls in the home, so you won’t have complete privacy like you would if you were living in more than one home. Still, for some, that can be an advantage. 

Too Much Togetherness

Living together can sometimes mean too much togetherness. When adults take in their aging parents, they oftentimes take on more responsibilities. That can sometimes lead to burnout. It’s tough to raise your own kids, while also being the primary caregiver for a parent. There may also be situations where you just need a little break from being together so much. You probably can’t get much distance if you live in the same home.

Potential for Conflicts

There could also be a few conflicts that pop up from time to time when everyone is living together. It’s pretty unlikely you’ll get along perfectly with everyone all the time. Even people who love each other sometimes disagree. It could be hard, too, if the disagreements concern the house or the lifestyle of people living together. 

Shared Expenses

Some of those conflicts could be tied to shared expenses. If all the adults are sharing in the household expenses, you’ll have to be open and honest about expectations. Utility costs will probably be higher if you have more people living in a home, so you’ll want to make sure everyone is on the same page. 

Legal Complications

With a multigenerational living situation, there may also be some legal complications. If anyone who lives in the home and has a stake in the financial investment of the home should ever want to move or sell, there could be some issues to work out. 

Lifestyle Adjustments

Finally, there could simply be some lifestyle adjustments that become necessary with multigenerational living. It could mean going to bed a little earlier yourself rather than staying up late watching the big game or changing some of your other family habits to better adapt to the needs of everyone.

Still, there are plenty of advantages to multigenerational living, so be sure and look at all the pros, as well as some of the drawbacks, before deciding if this type of home is right for your family.