Why these millennial ‘virgins’ didn’t want to leave mom and dad’s house

Home is where the heart is — and for these millennials, that means mom and dad’s house.

A new HGTV and Discovery+ show follows adult children as they attempt to take flight from the parental nest — and finally buy their first homes.

Aptly titled “40 Year Old Property Virgin,” the series premieres Wednesday.

“Everyone I know that bought a house either got it with their wedding money or lived with their parents,” Manda Miller, who’s featured on the show’s first episode, told The Post.

She and husband Rich Honick moved in with her parents in Parlin, NJ, so they could save up for a house. The couple, who had been renting, ended up staying there for two years.

“After being on our own for so long, I realized sometimes you need to lean on your parents. We kind of regretted not living with them long enough to build a nest egg,” said Miller, 41.

They’re not late bloomers — at least not compared to their peers. Fifty-two percent of young adults lived with their parents in 2020, a level not seen since the Great Depression, according to data released last year from Pew. In 2019, 22 percent of people ages 23 to 37 were shacking up with Mom and Dad, nearly double the number that did in 2001, according to Zillow.

Miller and Honick, 39, had previously lived with her parents — about two decades ago, when they were in their early 20s.

“It was hard. We were in their basement and we were living on an air mattress. I was sort of young and hot-headed and would argue with my mom,” Miller said. She and Honick left and began renting, which was a huge suck on their finances. “We couldn’t figure out a way to buy a house.”

Shockingly, Honick, who works in construction, was the one who came up with the idea to move back in with his in-laws, Diane, 72, and Paul, 73.

“I thought it was super bizarre,” Miller said. But to her surprise, this time around, the dynamics ended up being more friendly than familial.

And Mom and Dad were more than happy to welcome them back.

“Diane and Manda became much closer, and that was a beautiful thing to see,” Paul told The Post of his wife and daughter.

Since marrying in 1969, the parents of four have seen nearly all their kids move back in after college graduation. They’re now even housing a grandson.

But it’s not all happy homes on the show. In one episode, Carissa can’t wait to buy a real house and move in with her fiancé, Ryo, who has been happily squatting in his childhood bedroom at his mother’s.

And art teacher Brad’s mom and stepdad are sick of having to accommodate his messy projects. Though they’re “ridiculously close,” the parents are ready to get their “alone time” back. They’re hoping their son will use his new place to get a girlfriend and finally give them grandchildren.

When the Millers’ tenants had saved up enough to buy a home — about a two-hour drive away — Diane had mixed emotions. “I was sad that they would be leaving, because I wouldn’t have that closeness anymore, but I was absolutely overjoyed they would be able to buy their own house,” she said.

Both spouses look back fondly at their return to the nest. “At this age, you want to spend time with your parents. They’re not around forever, and it’s great bonding time,” said Manda. “I would tell anyone to do it.”