Some adults still getting allowance

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Some adults still getting allowance

In the Korean culture, many adults live with their parents even after finishing college and landing a job. But a recent study found many were also still economically dependent, with some even receiving allowances.

According to job recruitment site Saramin on Friday, 28.5 percent or 198 among a poll of 697 people in their 20s and 30s said they were still economically dependent on their parents, even though they are working.

The majority of those dependents, or 102, said they remained reliant simply because they lived with their parents. Such adults are referred to as “kangaroo children,” after the baby kangaroos that live in their mothers’ pouches. The second-biggest reason the young adults gave for remaining bankrolled by their parents was their salary was minuscule (82). Some said they were still dependent because they wanted to build a financial foundation for themselves as soon as possible (55).

Others said they were saving their salary for other purposes, like marriage expenses (48). Some put the blame on their parents, saying they remained dependent because it was what their parents wanted (12).

In the poll, 89 said they received money for daily expenses like meals, while 66 admitted getting help with living expenses like rent. Thirty-eight said their parents paid for their insurance.

When asked how long they planned to mooch off their parents, 30 percent said they would wait until they got married and moved out.

Others, 26.3 percent, said they would remain economically dependent until they moved out on their own, while 12.6 percent said they would wait until they’d reached the target level of income that they set for themselves.

Just 2.5 percent said they planned to continue to receive money until their parents could no longer afford to provide it.

On average, the dependents received a monthly allowance of 320,000 won ($294). Many, 22.2 percent, received a monthly allowance between 200,000 won and 300,000 won. Others, 21.7 percent, received less than 100,000 won a month. Those who received between 100,000 won and 200,000 won accounted for 17.2 percent of the total.


BY LEE HYUN-TAEK [lee.hojeong@joongang.co.kr]
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