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Comment by asiachick | Hacker News Reader

This seems like a very USA perspective. Maybe less so for men but in Japan, plenty of 20 something women consider their mom their best friend and they hang out. I'm just guessing there are other cultures with similar practices. In the USA or a least in US media, pretty much all movies with teens/young adults emphasize getting out on your own as soon as possible. I don't think that's a universal.

In fact, while this is probably NOT true, if it was I wouldn't be surprised, and "that" would be that it's possible that marketing companies pushed this narrative through the media, like they did with diamond rings and cigarettes, since going single means you need more stuff. More places to live (1 person instead of 1 per family), more things you'd normally be able to share (pretty much everything in your house except toothbrushes and clothing), need your own car, etc...

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I thought the same thing.

Some of my Asian friends were still living with their parents at 25 years old and apparently enjoying it. I've seen it in Vietnam, Taiwan, and Singapore, so it appears pretty widespread.

I know at least one guy who easily could have purchased his own apartment in Singapore. But he very much enjoyed having relatives visit with their small kids, as they would cheer up everyone by being silly. So he stayed at his parents place until he got married and started making kids of his own.

And yes, he probably saved lots of money that way, too. But I'm sure he didn't need to. He was the CEO of a well funded startup with a $50mio+ exit. Also, he sometimes invited friends (like me) and coworkers to his parents place and nobody thought that was weird.

It really is a US / western cultural difference.

Wow! Thanks for sharing--that really does strike me as unusual, coming from my US perspective. How did your friend date while living at home? I'm genuinely curious--having a hard time understanding how this would work (but I also have overbearing parents...).

There's cheap cafes everywhere, so going on a date is easy. For feeling each other up, you can go to a karaoke place, they'll have semi public rooms. For more, there's hotels you can rent by the hour, usually within walking distance of clubs and karaoke bars. Plus all of these countries are warm enough that you can also just cuddle in a park, at the beach, or in the rainforest.

I didn't know that about Japan. I was born overseas but have been living in the US since I was three, so you're correct--definitely a US perspective. The capitalist slant is interesting too but I don't know if I totally agree with it...I suppose it's possible.

I think my point is less about where you physically live and more about how you prioritize your time and focus.

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