"I'm 27 and have been married for five years. And my parents are our roommates."

I’m 27 and I still live with my parents.

Which doesn’t sound all that abnormal, except for when I add in the fact that I’m married.

Yup, my husband and I count mum and dad as our roomies.

After 2 1/2 years of living in Sydney’s trendy inner city as a young, married couple, our bank balance simply couldn’t take it anymore.

Sure, we could eat smashed avocado and feta on soy linseed sourdough toast and drink single origin coffee every weekend, but could we save for a deposit on a home in the Sydney property market?

Hell. No.

So, we packed up our one bedroom, IKEA-filled apartment and moved back in with my parents. Two years and an investment property later, we're still there. Oops.

The situation might sound strange to you - in fact, I'm regularly greeted with exclamations of "OH MY GOD, REALLY?" whenever I share the news of my living situation with anyone - but I can list a huge number of couples I know who are doing the exact same thing.

Whether it be in an attempt to save for their first home (or, rather, their first studio apartment), save for a wedding or just save more than bloody $2.50 a week, plenty of my friends and their partners are sitting down to dinner with their parents in the homes they grew up in every single night.

Breaking into the Sydney property market (or any property market, to be honest) is hard work. Balancing a job that pays only a pinch more than minimum wage because you've only just graduated from uni and trying to save for an elusive 10% deposit? Nearly impossible.

Of course, the fact that it's way more common than people think doesn't stop the questions about how the whole situation works from flooding in every time I mention that yes, I share a house with my mum and dad.

So, here goes. Your burning questions about rooming with the parents, answered.

Do you pay rent?

Short answer: yes. Long answer: it's less rent and more 'here's some money to cover all of the jars of Nutella and bottles of Sauvignon Blanc you buy us every week'.

If we want something special (read: organic avocados), we pay for it ourselves. Our phones, car, public transport and insurance all comes from our own pockets, too.

(Fun fact: I've learned that making jokes about such the financial arrangements probably isn't the best idea. I'll never forget my dad's face when I thanked him for being such a "clean and tidy" roommate and for "always paying his rent on time" last Christmas. AWKS.)

How much longer are you planning on mooching off staying with your parents?

People are usually quite understanding when I explain that we moved to the room DIRECTLY BELOW (see next question) my parents in order to save for our first property.

They're LESS understanding when I explain that earlier this year, we purchased an apartment and promptly let someone else move in to help pay our mortgage.

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And I get it. It sounds awfully....exploitative. But the truth is, it was my mum and dad's idea to use our apartment as an investment property so a) we could figure out the next step we wanted to take in our lives and b) they wouldn't have to be empty nesters and come to terms with the fact they are now grandparents.

Win, win for everyone, right? RIGHT?

How do you have *lowers voice and makes sure no-one else is listening* sex?

Very, very, VERY quietly.

Except when mum and dad aren't home, but then you're opening yourself up to a WHOLE NEW LEVEL OF AWKWARD when someone comes home from work early and starts stomping around to let you know they can hear.

True story.

Having a roommate that you can't look in the eye for a few days? It's tricky.

Next question.

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How do you divvy up the household chores?

Hubby and I do our own laundry.

Admittedly, that's more to do with the fact that I'm very protective of washing things according to their EXACT care instructions than the fact mum says we have to. Cold hand wash doesn't mean "chuck it in and see what happens".

Other rules? Whoever doesn't cook dinner has to do the washing up (a rule that's been in place since I was about 10). We're responsible for cleaning our own bedroom and bathroom (because #adults) and we have to tell mum when we're not coming home for dinner so she doesn't waste an extra lamb chop.

Isn't living with your parents....just a little weird? Don't you all hate each other?

In the (almost) two years I've been living back at home, husband in tow, there's only been one argument where the subject of "moving out" has been breached.

(It started because mum bought the wrong type of sausages for me to use for dinner. I wanted gourmet. She bought "standard". It was all very, very dramatic.)

In all honestly, though, we all get along perfectly fine. Sorry if that's not what you wanted to hear. My parents and I have a great relationship, which is part of the reason why it wasn't that big of a deal to move back in with them in the first place.

In fact, some would say we get along too well. It's pretty obvious my parents now love my husband more than me: dad often takes him diving on weekends, and is always asking where he is if he happens to be more than 10 minutes late home from work.

I just get dirty looks for binge-watching Netflix every weekend while eating blocks of chocolate (Mum, it's called "relaxation time", OK?).

Living back at home after you're supposed to have 'flown the nest' is not ideal, and it's not for everyone. It can be uncomfortable, and yes, I yearn for my own space (and I'm pretty sure mum is really sick of my reorganising her kitchen/fridge/bathroom/linen closet every time I get bored).

But mostly? It's working for everyone just fine.