Boomers Move Back Home

Young people have long fled recessionary job markets by moving back home, but the current crisis has a new demographic scurrying there: the middle-aged. "This is not like, 'OK, my son just graduated from college and needs to move back in' type of thing," says one financial planner, who has seen more adult children leaning on parents for everything from rent to groceries.

“We have a hard time saying no as a culture to our children, and they keep asking for more,” another tells the AP, noting that parents can jeopardize their own financial security and retirement plans by subsidizing their kids. A recent AARP survey found that a quarter of those aged 28 to 39 receive monetary assistance from family and friends. (More subprime crisis stories.)