Millennials & Marriage
By: Cesar Saldana
Millennials are rejecting marriage in record numbers.
From 1946-1964, marriage rates were at an all-time high. Ninety-one percent of the population were wed by the age of 40. The average age for a women to get married was 20-years-old, while the average age for men was at the age of 23.
Millennials get married at a much older age, notably waiting until almost their 30's. Nowadays women tend to get married at the age of 27, and for men the age has jumped to 29-years-old, in reference to studies by Bentley University.
Not only are millennials slower to get married,only 70 percent will be wed by the age of 40. Recent marriage rates also advocate that more people will remain unmarried through 40 than ever before,and one out of every four millennials will never get married, studies suggested by the Pew Research Center.
These numbers indicate that millennials no longer consider marriage as societies ultimate goal.
Millennials have also been cutting ties with religious affiliation in high numbers, many religions are family oriented and see marriage as an ultimate fulfillment, thus lack of attention in religious practices would make marriage less desirable.Marriage ceremonies are traditional and religious, such as the bride wearing an all-white dress, her being walked down the aisle by her father, and the vows that husband and wife are bound to for life.
Americans aged 18 to 29 with no religious affiliations have nearly quadrupled in the last 30 years, at a rate of 10 percent with no religious affiliations in 1986 to 39% percent in 2016.
Millennials are on pace to become the most educated generation ever, which indicates that millennials attend universities in record numbers. Universities who have increased the cost of tuition an eye-raising 213 percent, since 1988. In our age, loans are essential In order to receive bachelor's and master's degrees, high college tuition and graduating in a period of economic recession has left millennial students in debt.
In fact, Millennials have record student debt. Since 2006, the national student debt has doubled. The main culprit being the increase of college tuition which has outpaced overall economic inflation itself. This is due to the government lending student’s money and or advocating private lenders to do the same, information gathered by the Burlington Record.
Leaving millennials with extra bills, little leisure money and limited time to go on dates and harbor a romantic relationship. Albeit less attention on marriage is not negative, according to millennials.
Sixty-seven percent agree that society would be better off if people have priorities other than marriage and children.Millennials are focused on their careers and dedicate their time to jobs, instead of fostering a relationship. Nearly one out of every three would be willing to end a relationship if it meant a receiving a considerable raise at work.
To put that statistic into numbers, on average, a millennial would be willing to completely end a relationship for an average income of $37,000 a year. Young adults would also delay marriage in favor of an average income of $64,000 a year, research conducted by Comet Financial Intelligence.
Circumstances such as lack of religious beliefs,record high student debt and the preference to focus on careers all factor in to why millennials marriage rates are at an all time low. The record low numbers express a negative pattern, but the desire for marriage has not completely dissipated.
Catherine Rampell argued in a recent Washington Post opinion piece that marriage is in fact desired but simply out of reach for many millennials:
“Even as marriage rates have plummeted, particularly for the young and the less educated. Gallup survey data shows that young singles very much hope to get hitched. Of Americans aged 18 to 34, only nine percent have never been married and say they do not ever want to marry.”
Traditional marriage come with benefits, such as more tax benefits, more social security options, and lower car insurance premiums. Although, the recent decline in rates indicate that modern society deem tradition marriage to be outdated. New ideas about romance and family should be observed as current rates of traditional marriage demonstrate it is no longer societies highest ideal.