Baby Boomers Heading Home to Mom and Dad in Droves

As she approached 50, Sarah's biggest concerns were caring for her aging parents and helping her 18-year-old son become independent after he graduated from college.

Five years later, the Florida woman was in shock, dependent on her 83-year-old parents in Iowa to support both her and her son.

Baby boomers are part of the sandwich generation. We read endless stories of their 20-something children moving back in with them after college and their struggles caring for aging parents.

These days, however, boomers are doing something a little different. They're heading back home to mom and dad in increasing numbers.

Sarah's situation is becoming typical. Divorced at 42, she found a stable job as a graphic artist working for a medium-sized family-owned publisher. When she developed breast cancer at 53, her insurance maxed out and left her with more than $150,000 in medical bills to pay and a son still in college. While she struggled to make sense of the numbers, her employer downsized and eliminated her job. She had no income.

Eventually, unable to pay even her rent, Sarah filed for bankruptcy. A year after his graduation, her son had not found any full-time work. Her parents reluctantly agreed to allow them to pack their bags and move into the family home in Iowa while they got back on their feet.

At a time when they're worried about having enough funds to cover their own retirement, the seniors are shelling out around $1,500 a month to help pay bills their daughter and their grandson owe.

Until recent years, the trend was for aging parents to move in with their children. However, the slumping economy has forced many boomers back home. According to Oregon mortgage expert Larry Morris, financial planners are getting lots of calls from parents seeking advice about taking in their adult children now in their forties and fifties.

Morris also states that a recent AARP study discovered that 25 percent of those in Generation X - people aged 19 to 39 - receive some kind of financial help from their family and friends. However, 57 percent of the 1,800 individuals questioned believed they were financially independent.