BUSINESS INSIGHTS: Why is the South African family home changing?
· The South African
Multi-generational living is hardly new to South Africa. For many families, grandparents have long played a central role in raising children, particularly where parents move elsewhere in search of work. In fact, in 2023, Stats SA found that 38% of South African children lived in households headed by their grandparents.
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What is relatively new, however, is the growing number of families choosing to live across generations under one roof because affordability pressures are making separate households harder to sustain, even in cultures where this has not traditionally been the norm. And it’s not just South Africa experiencing this trend.
Affordability drives a global shift toward shared homes
The Pew Research Centre found that 25% of American adults aged 25-34 were living in a multi-generational household. In the UK, that jumps even higher – with one in three adults aged 20-34 still living with their parents in 2025.
The reasons why are no mystery. All over the world, entry-level jobs are becoming harder to come by, while property prices and rents continue to soar. This leaves many young adults with few choices but to stay at home for longer.
But while financial pressure may be keeping multiple generations under one roof, it is also changing what families need from the homes they buy or already own. The real challenge is in balancing the benefits of shared living – including multiple incomes and shared responsibility – with each generation’s right to privacy and independence.
Privacy within proximity
For practical reasons as well as financial ones, the majority of families contemplating multi-generational living will default to adapting their current home for the new household arrangement rather than buying a new one.
Garages, garden cottages, ‘granny flats’ and unused sections of larger homes are increasingly being converted into self-contained spaces for adult children, ageing parents or other relatives. The trick is to make the space work without overcapitalising. A practical conversion should improve how the home functions, not saddle the family with renovation costs they may never recover.
This shift may also influence how future residential properties are designed, with greater demand for separate entrances, additional bathrooms and living areas that can be closed off when needed, making it easier for a property to accommodate changing family needs over time. A space used by a grandparent today could become accommodation for an adult child later down the line.
These features are also influencing homebuyer preferences. Families are increasingly looking for properties that offer ‘privacy within proximity’, rather than simply the largest home they can afford. In some cases, multiple generations are pooling their incomes to buy a more suitable property together.
That can widen the range of homes available to them, but it also raises an important question: when several family members contribute financially, who owns what?
Buying together requires difficult conversations upfront
Buying property together can strengthen a family’s financial position. But without clear rules, the arrangement can just as easily become a source of conflict. To avoid this, follow the golden rule: family trust is important, but it is not a substitute for a legal agreement.
Before signing anything, everyone contributing financially to the property purchase needs to settle a few difficult questions:
- Whose names will appear on the title deed and bond?
- How will the deposit and monthly repayments be divided?
- Who will cover rates, maintenance and future renovations?
- Does every financial contribution translate into an ownership stake?
- What happens if one person wants to sell, move out or can no longer contribute?
- How will death, divorce or inheritance affect the arrangement?
A written co-ownership agreement can take the emotions out of it by clearly outlining
each person’s responsibilities, ownership share and exit options should circumstances change or relationships become strained. Independent legal advice is also essential, especially when several generations contribute different amounts.
A different, but not diminished, form of homeownership
Multi-generational living may be on the rise due to affordability pressures facing families across the globe, but it does not make those who choose to purchase property collectively any less of a homeowner. Nor is there any shame in recognising that rebuilding savings may sometimes mean moving back in with one’s parents or welcoming adult children home.
When a multi-generational home is designed to give people both support and space, it can offer something many separate households cannot: a more resilient way for families to live, care and build wealth together.