Statistics show divorce and marriage rates may be down

HomeInsightsStatistics show divorce and marriage rates may be down

Many people who live in New Jersey may well have heard people spout off about the high rate of failure among marriages today. There can be a lot of reasons that such claims are made or believed but it is useful to look at some actual data to confirm or deny these assertions. Some research actually seems to indicate that the divorce rate in America is not as high as many people might claim or think.

As reported recently by Good Housekeeping, the divorce rate in America is actually lower than it has been in the past. In fact, one study conducted by a researcher at the University of Maryland shows a drop in divorces between 2008 and 2016 of eight percent after demographic adjustments have been made. Before those adjustments, the drop in the divorce rate per the data was 18 percent.

However, other information added another angle to the story in that the number of marriages has also dropped across the country. More people are choosing to remain single with some of those people opting to cohabitate with their partners but not to get married. Since 2007, the number of couples living together without signing a marriage decree has risen by 29 percent.

Some people are concerned that this drop in the marriage rate may be tied to financial instability or lack of financial means, making a marriage something of a status symbol. This may also be a factor in divorces where more assets are involved, complicating the process of getting divorced for many couples.