<prompt> Human: To give a brief overview of where Im at in my life 26 years old and living at home with no bills or rent Full time job making 50,000 a year with good benefits and retirement pension and 403b 50,000 in savings 35,000 in various stocks 5,000 in retirement from starting my new job a few months ago No credit card debt, student loans, or car payment due to my parents GRACIOUSLY helping me out as I went through school to get my Bachelors Just to start off, I am incredibly fortunate for what my parents have provided for me and cant thank them enough for giving me everything I have. This is why I feel so guilty for wanting to move out before they think Im ready. Where Im stuck is deciding when to move out. My parents tell me that I can stay home as long as need in order to save for a down payment on a house. While I appreciate the kindness, the problem is the average starting price for a house in my Southern California city and all the surrounding area is around 450,000 for an 1100 sq ft 2 bedroom house or condo. Not the cheapest for a first time homeowner. I also dont know if I want to stay in the only city Ive ever lived in while being so young in age and in my newly started career. I dont know if I can picture myself spending the next 30 years here without wanting to start new in another city or state. I love my parents very much and they dont put down too many rules living with them. The issue Im having is not feeling like a 26 year old adult. Ive saved for so many years and established good spending habits but I feel like Im missing out on the personal growth that comes with living on your own. Right now my parents have their own set ways so laundry, cooking and grocery shopping is done by them. I cant even picture myself doing those things, let alone doing that while taking care of a house! I know those lessons will come whenever I decide to move out but that urge keeps getting stronger and stronger. At the moment I feel like Im not growing or pushing myself as much as I should be and now that I have my job I dont have any new life challenges. I feel bored at home not being able to take care of my own place. Right now my girlfriend of 2 and a half years is looking into moving out on her own as well in the same city and wants me to move out with her. She hasnt saved what Ive saved but financially she can handle her own. With my half of the rent id be paying around 1000 for all rent and utilities so easily doable while still saving. The argument now comes from what my parents taught me that paying rent is throwing money away and not being put towards anything. I used to fully believe that until I saw the costs of owning a home. Ive become protective of my money and hate spending it which is a whole other topic on its own so the idea of investing 75-100,000 on a downpayment on top of the basic costs of living on your own gives me anxiety and stresses me out. I feel like spending a year or two in an apartment learning the ins and outs of surviving on my own while still saving a nice amount of money would be worth the investment. Going from living at home having everything done for me to being responsible for a house might be more than I can mentally handle. What do you think? Continue living at home saving more money and potentially miss out on the fun of living out on my own while Im still in my 20s, or move into an apartment spending money on rent I cant get back and give up the comfort of my parents open arms but have a lot of personal growth and fun experiences Ill get from the new challenges I would face? Even though I feel Im ready to start on my own life, leaving such a comfortable nest that Im not being pushed out of is not easy : Thank you to anyone who reads all the way through!!! This ended up being much longer than I expected it to be haha  <response>: At your age, its time to focus on the skills you will learn by moving out and living with someone you care abouttrust. Running a household with just two people can be a lot to learn, and the sooner you jump into that, the better. Especially with the head start you have financially. 