Co-Living

Housing prices have been generally high, and there is an affordability/cost-of-living crisis going on. Even when prices drop (such as due to recent interest rate hikes) that can mean a drop in supply, as existing owners take their houses off the market. Whatever houses are left over, might have to be shared.

I think the idea of having your in-laws be in-house as a nightmare is somewhat of a western perspective. I'm not an expert, but in some Eastern cultures (from what I have observed) it is assumed that multiple generations live in close proximity to one another. This may be due to higher density of population or other factors. So while #1 might be the biggest consideration for immigrant families, it might not be the only one.

When I think about it, even in Germany, my grandmother lived on the 3rd story of a low-rise apartment building while my aunt and uncle were on the ground floor. My grandmother's sister lived across the hall with her daughter, and my adult cousin lived with her boyfriend on the top floor. Families don't have to have individual houses, even in a Western country like Germany.

Senior citizens require extra care, which can be provided by their adult children. Houses we've looked at have included "In-Law Suites" (with their own bath/kitchen) so that grandparents can live semi-independently.

...to raise a child. Having roommates outside the nuclear family eases the load of child-rearing, and kids can be supervised by different adults giving everyone more respite.

I can't prove it, but I'll bet the shopping bill for 3 meals for 8 people is less than the total of 2 shopping bills of 3 meals for 4 people; i.e. large meals for more people is less than the sum of the parts for separate households.

Living with an ex-partner seems like it would be incredibly difficult, but I know it's being done somewhere. Divorce is extremely costly, and if there's a way to maintain a standard of living, physical assets and comforts along with access to children, it might make sense for ex-partners to cohabitate (with certain boundaries and allowances for space). Again, a divorcing couple might be better off buying one bigger house than 2 separate houses of equal (or lesser) size to their previous home.

During the worst of the pandemic, I lived in a community with lots of multi-family homes, and COVID transmission was worse. It didn't help that many were employed in service, healthcare or logistics.

Powering a single home even with more people in it, is going to consume less energy than multiple homes. Furthermore, any family visits cut down on emissions from combustion engine vehicles - you just walk downstairs!