> too independent

individualistic

The American tendency to move away from family earlier is probably involved.

After college, I intentionally lived with roommates. The three of us were doing well, having secured jobs at Microsoft and Amazon.

Even so, splitting rent, utilities, and furniture was a significant financial advantage and helped set us up for long-term success.

We had our disagreements, and eventually a falling out with one roommate, but I’d do it all again. The other roommate and I are life long friends and you learn lessons and form bonds in addition to the financial benefit.

Unrealistic expectations from women driven by modern pop culture and social media, men seeing this and getting frustrated. Men and women living alone is the outcome. How could it be any other way? I managed to find a woman who wasn't indoctrinated by the system and we're happily married. I wish everyone here luck. Don't do dating apps at all, that's part of the grift. Go outside and talk to people. (I say from my keyboard)

Probably most of all the increase of the age of marriage

The population is growing older. Young adults rarely live alone, while retirees often do. There are more old people than there used to be, and people often want to continue living in their own home after their spouse dies.

The issue is the number of people who ‘surprise’ you with out of control behaviors that are a huge issue with room mates. And getting out of living situation with someone like that can be extremely difficult.

People can seem perfectly fine, until they seem to spontaneously turn into hoarders, or start eating all your food and lying about it, or start being aggressively in your face about a bunch of antagonistic culture bullshit, etc.

I think what we’re seeing is Americans increasingly fed up with (or even terrified of) other Americans.

Living close to friends seems like a good idea as well.

Living in suburbia has definitely made me yearn for this: https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/should-more-of-us-...

Then again how many more people would live alone if they could afford to rent or buy on a single income?

Living close to friends and having a community that knows/supports each other helps a lot but living with friends is a good way to end up with less friends. Someone you can stand being around all day is very different than someone you really enjoy spending a few hours a month with.

Part of the loneliness crisis is the difficulty of making friends.

This reminds me, yesterday I was walking down the hallway of my apartment building, and one of my neighbors passed by me but neglected to even acknowledge my existence, because their head was down staring at their smartphone.

You know how you can tell if you have a really good friend? They will help you dispose of your roommate's body, 24 by 7, no questions asked.

Both directly, by providing a social circle, and indirectly, by training people to live with a partner.

If you own shares in e.g. Costco, a long-term sustained trend of shrinking household sizes might give you pause.

People's life choices are their own, but if many people choose to live alone, that objectively affects housing situation in the society.

It's a bad thing if we want a cohesive society or if we wish to maximise well-being (both of which are challenged by people increasing their exposure to solitude and loneliness); and your claim about life choices is only partially true - we are all constrained/guided by genetic and environmental factors.

> People's life choices are their own.

Only a king or simpleton believes this.

> People's life choices are their own.

How do you know it's by choice?

> Is it a bad thing? People's life choices are their own.

How much of a choice is it that they made willing? The number has doubled over the last few decades:

* https://www.self.inc/blog/adults-living-alone

* https://thesocietypages.org/graphicsociology/tag/living-alon...

There are health (and happiness) consequences to not being connected to other people:

* https://archive.is/https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive...

* https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loneliness_epidemic

It triggers conservatives and Christians who believe in the nuclear family and biblical lifestyle. They despise liberty and agency.

> Is it a bad thing?

Considering there are both housing and loneliness crises going on, and that being lonely or socially isolated leads to an early death and radicalisation, I’d say it’s fair to categorise it as a bad thing, yes.

Sure, not every single one of those people living alone will be lonely, but I think it’s fair to deduce that many people who are lonely and isolated live alone.

https://www.cnn.com/2023/06/19/health/loneliness-social-isol...

https://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/lcdocs/other/21402/Delany%...

Interesting that UK is not in the top 10 list. Because of more ethnic diversity, or because they cannot afford single households?

> https://statranker.org/population/top-10-countries-with-high...

It's not (just) about the absolute number, but the trend as well; see "Chart 2. Rise of single-person households, 1990–2025".

But it is one of the largest drivers for increased housing demand.

oh man, you just gave me a flashback to my roommates a decade ago changing my WiFi router password since they thought I was working too much. That was not my finest moment as far as practicing conflict resolution goes :)

But that’s also the point. Low risk situation to practice things that later in life become much higher risk. Better to figure out how to cohabitate with a few random roommates than a SO down the road.