Apartment developers can compete all they want for Millennials to move into their buildings, but they're still losing the battle to the one group that can offer rent-free living: parents. According to a study by the Pew Research Center, the number of 18- to 34-year-olds still living with their parents has increased even as unemployment has dropped. From January to April this year, only 67% of Millennials were living independently, down from 69% in 2010 and 71% in 2007. As the nation has added more than 3 million Millennials in the last five years, the number of households started by that same group has dipped by 200,000. Pew economist Richard Fry, who led the report, didn't draw any conclusions about why young adults are more likely to stay at home, or if the trend shows any sign of reversing. [Pew]

Ethan Rothstein, Bisnow DC