Living Together Trumps Matrimony for Recession-Wary Americans

[marmar]

(Bloomberg) The probability of a woman getting married by age 25 dropped to less than half as more Americans opt to cohabitate with their romantic partners rather than tie the knot, a U.S. government study shows.

The proportion of women living with men without marriage almost quadrupled to 11 percent as of 2010 from 3 percent in 1982, according to data released today by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. For men, the proportion rose to 12 percent in 2010 from 9 percent in 2002, said Casey Copen, a demographer at the National Center for Health Statistics.

The shift toward premarital living arrangements contributed to the delay in first marriage for both women and men. The recession that started in 2007 also may have played a role as young couples avoided the commitment because of unemployment and uncertain financial security. In 2006-2010, women and men married for the first time at older ages than in previous years.

“In today’s economic climate, many young adults are reluctant to pull the trigger,” said W. Bradford Wilcox, director of the National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, which monitors the health of marriage. “They may be unemployed or underemployed or not know what the future looks like. They’re hedging their bets.” ................(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-03-22/living-together-trumps-matrimony-for-recession-wary-americans.html

[elleng]

1. 'Cohabitate?'

Really?
(Sorry, pet peeve.)

[Journeyman]

2. I much prefer "POSSLQ". . .

POSSLQ -- the official census bureau word from 1980 for "Persons of Opposite Sex Sharing Living Quarters."

My POSSLQ

Come live with me and be my love,
And we will some new pleasures prove
Of golden sands and crystal brooks
With silken lines, and silver hooks.
There's nothing that I wouldn't do
If you would be my POSSLQ.

You live with me, and I with you,
And you will be my POSSLQ.
I'll be your friend and so much more;
That's what a POSSLQ is for.

And everything we will confess;
Yes, even to the IRS.
Some day on what we both may earn,
Perhaps we'll file a joint return.
You'll share my pad, my taxes, joint;
You'll share my life - up to a point!
And that you'll be so glad to do,
Because you'll be my POSSLQ.


~ Charles Osgood
(CBS News Correspondent)

[elleng]

3. That's ok, but COHABIT is what POSSLQs DO!!!