Report: Millennials rely on parents for financial help with gas, rent and more

MILWAUKEE -- Millennials are still filling their tanks thanks to the "Mom and Dad Community Gas Station," and they're relying on their parents for more than just gas money, according to a new report.

The report, from the Country Financial Security Index, says more than half of millennials between the ages of 21 to 37 receive financial assistance for various living expenses such as gas and groceries, a cellphone, rent or health insurance.

Interestingly, the highest item requiring assistance is the cellphone bill, with at least 41 percent of millennials ringing their parents for a chunk of change.

About a third, 37 percent, said they get cash assistance monthly, while nearly 6 in 10, 59 percent, said they receive it a couple times a year.

One expert at Country Financial said a primary reason for millennials staying on the cash hotline is debt load -- a continuing and higher payout for millennials that earlier generations may not have had.

The median student debt load is $41,200, and that's above the median annual income of $38,800.

Another relational factor is that millennials see their parents more as friends, keeping them around the parental piggy bank a little longer in life.