How to Get Your Adult Children to Move Out of Your Home

Especially in a tough economy, it is becoming increasingly common for adult children to continue living at home, even when you wish they would just move out and take care of themselves. After so many years of investment, parents deserve to have an empty nest and to be free from the burden of cooking for and cleaning up after their children. The following tips will help you to get your reluctant adult child to move out of your home.

Have a Family Meeting

Before trying any of the below things, it is important that you sit down with your child and have a discussion (after all, they are adults and can handle this) about their living situation. You cannot expect them to move out if you have not expressed to them your desire that they live somewhere else.

Be Decisive

This is probably the most important thing on the list: you need to be decisive and firm, and stick to your word. If you set a deadline or a new rule, follow through on it, or your child will just continue to walk all over you.

Stop Cleaning Up After Your Child

If many of the benefits of living at home, like having mom do all the dishes and laundry, suddenly disappear, your child will be more likely to consider moving out.

Give Your Child Chores

Even better than just not taking care of your child's messes, make them clean the house in general, and do some cooking for the family. They'll get so tired of all of this and having to maintain your household standards that they will be aching to get into their own place and be boss again.

Make Your Child Pay Rent

Another benefit of living at home that your child has been enjoying is being able to have a free home and probably television and Internet access too. Research what a fair price would be for these amenities, and start billing your child. Once living at home costs just as much as living somewhere else, your adult child will think about living away from home.

Be a Matchmaker

This is a little bit cliché, but true: if your child is in a dating relationship, they probably don't want to still be living at home. Especially if they end up getting married, which is a sure way to get your child moved out of your house.

Help Your Child Research Other Housing

Many children just haven't learned yet how to go about finding their own apartments. Show your child how to do that research, and help as much as is appropriate.

Teach Your Child How to Pay Bills

Along with being in an apartment of his or her own, your child will also encounter a variety of bills that need to be paid on time. If you can increase your child's confidence in being able to succeed in a new home, it is more likely that he or she will move into one.

Be Flexible

Before this last step, it is important that you consider your own motivations for wanting your child to move out. If there are ways that their staying could actually be a good thing that would build relationships and responsibility, then maybe you might want to just let them stay for a little longer.

Set a Deadline for Moving Out

If all else fails, just set a deadline. On that date if the move-out hasn't occurred, put all of your child's belongings in the front yard, and turn the bedroom into a guest room.