Living at home once you hit the big 3-0 can seem like the dream. There's a roof over your head, electricity and heating that someone else is paying for, there's a fridge full of food on demand and all the mod cons that you need. But there comes a time when you need to fly the coop and do it on your own.
Look, we know it's the easier option, but how often is the easier option the better one? Nothing worth anything in life is got by taking the easy route so buck up and get moving. Here's five reasons you need to get out from under your parents in your 30s.
Questions
Yes, questions. You know the ones. 'Where were you that you were out until the early hours last night?'. 'Have you started thinking about a pension yet?'. 'Who's this person whose house you're spending a lot of time in?'. Those unbearable, repetitious questions about where you've been, who you've been with, how your plans for your life are progressing don't miraculously evaporate once you get out of your teens. As long as you're under your parents roof, they'll be coming at you with the questions until they get a satisfactory result (or you go mad). And that's fun for nobody.
Food
There's nothing more wonderful than arriving home everyday to a fully stocked kitchen with all the essentials for either immediate feasting, cooking up anything you desire or mere convenience-based snacking but come on. Once you're in our 30s, you need to have to learn how to fend for yourself, and as long as you're in the environment where grub is always available, you're never going to learn how to properly cook a decent meal. Everyone needs a good standard in their back pocket that they can whip out to impress guests, and no one was ever impressed by the line 'Oh no, I never cook. Never had to learn so I only get take-out'. Trust us, it's not the identifier you want.
Free Reign
Now this is one of the best reasons you shouldn't be living at home once you get out of your 20s. Once you're out on your own, you can have whoever you want over whenever you want. Tea and chats 'til the wee hours? Done. Cheeky Wednesday wine and cheese with your bezzies to get you over the hump of the week? All yours. Ragers that go on until the sun comes up the next day and continue on because the craic is just too mighty? In the bag. Just realise that with all this comes the tidy up after. No one likes to visit a messy home.
Pets
What's that? You were never allowed have the beast of your dreams because the senior folk in the establishment didn't want to put up with it? Well guess what. Now you get to have the best friend you always dreamed of because there's no one to say what goes on in your gaff but you. So it's time to get that dream journal out from years past and decide which ultimate animal is about to take up residence in your home and your heart. They can even sleep in your bedroom with you because, once again, you call the shots. Your inner 8-year-old is dancing right now, aren't they.
Respect
Let's be honest here. Once you've got your own place, you're going to be getting a lot more props from your peers, and not just in the beginning when it's all housewarming and celebrations. When you're a homeowner you have something that makes other people look up to you. 'Look how much they've got their life together' they'll say. 'Look at them, buying household utensils and furniture, decorating their home'. You'll be a fully formed adult (in everyone else's eyes if not your own) who has your stuff sorted. And that feeling is priceless.
