If your grown children have been leaning on you a little more lately, you are not imagining it. And you are far from alone.
According to the BMO Real Financial Progress Index, nearly two in five parents with young children (that is 37%) expect to receive some kind of financial help from their own parents or grandparents in the coming year. That means millions of boomers are being asked to step in, and many are already doing it.
The reasons are not hard to understand. BMO found that 82% of American parents say the cost of raising children has gotten out of control. Another 86% say everyday expenses such as daycare, after-school programs, summer camps, school supplies are making it harder to save for their kids’ futures. More than three in four parents said financial support from extended family is now essential just to give their children basic opportunities.
It Is Not Just About the Money
Of the parents expecting help, 43% are counting on grandparents to provide childcare, not a check, but actual time and presence. Another 26% said family members would help fund their grandchildren’s futures through a 529 plan or another savings account.
According to Care.com’s 2026 Cost of Care report, parents are spending an average of about 20% of their annual income on childcare. About one in five parents is spending more than $30,000 a year on it. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services considers childcare affordable when it costs no more than 7% of a family’s income.
Living Close Makes a Real Difference
BMO’s research found that 45% of American parents with young children live close enough to family to receive regular help. Those parents reported saving an average of $1,915 a year on childcare and $1,443 a year on groceries compared to parents without nearby family.
That is real money. But it comes with something to consider.
About 70% of parents receiving family support are also responsible for the financial or emotional well-being of their aging parents, compared to 45% of parents without that nearby help. Seven in ten of those parents identified as part of the so-called sandwich generation, supporting both their children and their aging parents at the same time.
BMO’s Robin Growley, U.S. Head of Consumer Products, put it plainly in the report: Having a grandparent help raise your kids can be one of life’s greatest gifts, but family caregiving is often a reciprocal arrangement and it can be a lot when you’re already stretched thin.
The Big Picture for Our Generation
Younger families are not waiting for what some are calling the Great Wealth Transfer. They need help now. Research firm Cerulli Associates estimates that $124 trillion in wealth will transfer through 2048, with nearly $100 trillion coming from baby boomers and older generations.
But that wealth will not reach everyone equally. Federal Reserve data from the second quarter of 2026 shows the top 1% of households held roughly 30% of total assets, while the bottom half held about 5%.
Also notable: 60% of Gen Z homeowners and 57% of Millennial homeowners told BMO they could not have purchased their homes without financial help from family.
If you are already helping, or being asked to, you are part of a larger story about how American families are holding each other together right now. Knowing that does not make the financial decisions any easier. But a clear plan, as Growley noted in the report, remains the best antidote to daily financial stress.
