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Philly millennials want houses someday, but many still need help from parents to pay rent

Though 91 percent say they want a house someday, only 44 percent have any savings toward a down payment, Apartment List found, and 18 percent rely on their parents to help with rent, Zumper found.

Philadelphia ranks third nationally — behind Detroit and Austin, Texas — in cities where millennials ask parents for rent assistance.
Philadelphia ranks third nationally — behind Detroit and Austin, Texas — in cities where millennials ask parents for rent assistance.Read moreDAVID MAIALETTI / Staff Photographer

Two new assessments of the millennial real estate market paint a bleak picture for renters and home buyers alike. One report finds it takes two decade for buyers in the Philadelphia area to save a down payment on a median-priced condo in the city. Another says Philadelphia has the third most millennials nationally whose parents help them pay their rent.

The report from Apartment List at least starts out somewhat optimistic. It notes that 91 percent of millennial renters in Philadelphia plan to buy a home … someday. Just 5 percent expect that day to come within the next year and 26 percent say it’s at least five years off. Simultaneously, though, 44 percent of local millennial renters reported having no down payment savings in a city where researchers calculate it will take more than 20 years for them to save enough a 20 percent down payment on a condo.

Thus, the findings from rental firm Zumper make a lot of sense. In its report, researchers conclude that 18 percent of millennial renters are getting help from parents. Philadelphia trails Austin, where 23 percent are helping out, and Detroit, where 24 percent of parents are helping.

Nationally, Zumper found a seven-point jump in the number of people 18 to 24 who reported living with their parents. With rent on the rise and down payments increasingly difficult to wrangle, is it any surprise?