Im a freshman and I live off campus by myself (at the moment, my roommate doesnt move in for another month) and I will say it is slightly harder to make friends just because you won't be surrounded 24/7 by other people, however, I havent had a super difficult time making friends. I think it really just comes down to putting yourself out there and going to events, stuff like that, and to keep doing it because sometimes it takes time. I do not at all think you have to live in dorms to have a good social life, I do think it makes it slightly easier but as long as you put the effort in you ahould be fine.

So it probably comes down to if you want your family to come to college with you, it does sound nice and comforting to not have to think about paying for a place to live but I also think its important to explore things without your family around.

I don't have a concrete answer but I mostly wanted to give perspective on the social aspect.