All in the Family

Merrill Lynch moved in with BofA, Wachovia got into bed with Wells Fargo, and the government is now just about everyone's roommate. But the banks bunking together may not be the strangest living arrangements to come from the recession. In fact, according to AARP, the number of multigenerational households skyrocketed 24 percent from 5 million in 2000 to 6.2 million in 2008. And you can find those across Charlotte, where multigenerational families are being forced to reunite under one roof so they have a roof. It's All in the Family, recession style.

	THE SITUATION A family of four (Elaine, thirty-six, and Brad Moody, thirty-seven; daughters Joanna, six, and Lila, four) welcomed Elaine's parents, Jay and Andrea Kabat, both sixty-three, into their south Charlotte home. WHY Elaine's dad lost his job and, at sixty-three, his prospects aren't looking so good. BEST PART The grandparents have a pretty cool relationship with the kids. (Plus, they do carpool and babysit.) AWKWARD MOMENT Sex with your parents down the hall. "At first you think about it, but then you just can't think about it," says Elaine. COUNTDOWN TO CHANGE Both Moodys work for BofA, so the whole family is watching their money right now. Probably staying put.
THE SITUATION Twenty-eight-year-old Rob Amos left his pad (and life) in Atlanta to move back in with his mom, Danielle Amos, fifty-four, in Ballantyne. WHY The up-and-coming Realtor saw the bubble burst big time and could barely afford to feed his dog, Lucy, let alone pay the $1,500-a-month rent on his Midtown condo. BEST PART "It's brought us closer together," says Danielle. "Once he moved out, he became his own person. With him moving back in, he's gotten to know me a little better, and I've gotten to know him a lot better." AWKWARD MOMENT Dating is tough enough even when you don't live with your mom. "I wish I could say it's cramping my style," says Rob. "I have no style. I have no life. I'm unemployed and living with my mom." COUNTDOWN TO CHANGE Rob is on the job hunt.
	THE SITUATION Peter and Paula Frisch, sixty-five and sixty-one, respectively, moved into the guest bedroom in daughter Meredith Frisch's Concord house. WHY The Frisch's Orlando home had been on the market for months when Paula was laid off. They'd wanted to move to Charlotte anyway. BEST PART "I recently needed major surgery and couldn't take care of myself for a while," says Meredith, thirty-seven. "It was really nice having my parents right upstairs." AWKWARD MOMENT "My mom always asks what time I'm going to be home from work. I have to remind her I'm thirty-seven." COUNTDOWN TO CHANGE The end's in sight -- Peter and Paula Frisch are hoping to move out in June.