Some researchers link the increased divorce statistics to an improving economy. Those couples (50+ years old) who were struggling in a bad relationship, decided to “hang on” rather than sell communal property that might have lost significant value. In many divorce situations, the house/assets are sold and the proceeds are split between husband and wife. With the economic recession of the past few years, many properties were “under water”, i.e. the money owed was more than the property could be sold for. Thus, there would have been no funds (or fewer funds) to distribute between the divorced pair – no monies for each partner to start life “anew”.
Compare this to the reasoning of prior years, where younger couples stayed together “for the sake of the young children” or “until the children are grown.”
Yet another rationale for staying together, were those couples who were in business together. Again, the recent economic problems were such that smaller businesses were in “survival mode”. If one of the married partners of the business were to leave the business, that firm would surely fail. Thus, those couples stayed together “for the sake of the business”, even while the children were grown and had left home. Again, if the business were sold, the value had declined such that there were fewer funds available for each partner.
However, in looking back to the past decade, 2000 to 2011, the Center for Disease Control maintained data on marriage and divorce rates in the United States and found that both marriage and divorce rates had decreased during that period.
If the matter of American marriage and divorce were not complicated enough, consider that with the aging of our population, there is an increase in the number of widows and widowers, even though healthier lifestyles allow for longer life expectancies in general. Those widows and widowers, rather than remain solo for the remaining years (remember those remaining years are longer, since a person is expected to live longer) will seek a “soul mate”.
Keep in mind that the Baby Boom generation was more prone to marry rather than establish “co-habitation” as the norm. Thus, a 60+ Baby Boomer following the death of a spouse, will find someone to marry and settle down to second marital bliss. The problem arises that statistically, second marriages are more prone to divorce (some psychologists suggest this is due to differing expectations). Thus, we have older couples getting married for the second time and finding that the marital bliss they expected is quite different from the reality.
There is an interesting set of data for 2011 published by the census bureau ( factfinder2.census.gov) which is also to some degree puzzling. The information below is an excerpt of the age category of 65+ (per 1,000) of American population:
Divorced Men 65+ = 10.2%
Divorced Women 65+ = 12.6%
Widowed Men 65+ = 12.9%
Widowed Women 65+ = 39.6%
Never Married Men 65+ = 4.6%
Never Married Women 65+ = 4.7%
Now Married Men 65+ = 71%
Now Married Women 65+ = 42%
Separated Men 65+ = 1.4%
Separated Women 65+ = 1.1%
The largest difference in the 65+ age group appears under the categories of “widowed” and “now married” and are opposite between the sexes. We can explain that a far greater percentage of women (39.6%) than men (12.9%) are widowed, since women still live longer than men. However, the disparity in the “now married” category (42.0% for women vs. 71.0% for men) requires deeper analysis (though we could assume that a portion of those men 65+ are married to women in a different age category and might account for the differential.)
Finally, into the complicated mix, we look at the fact that, while an improving economic outlook may be allowing for more divorces, there continue to be high costs in divorce, particularly for women. According to University of Utah sociology professor Nicholas Wolfinger – following a divorce, women’s per capita incomes drop by as much as 15% and they have higher poverty rates.
However, for both women and men, the emotional “cost” of remaining in an unhappy relationship, can far outweigh the economic hardship of divorce.
On a final note, men and women facing a “life changing event” such as divorce or remarriage, might be advised to seek the counsel of an experienced professional to determine economic outcomes and impacts on their future, for example remarriage and a move to a community property state. According to the helpful www.irs.gov publication Publication 555 Rev. January 2014, the IRS recognized community property states are: Arizona, California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington and Wisconsin. Alaska has the “community property election” under Alaska state laws.
Also, if you are considering the use of any pre marital agreement, it is wise to have the document reviewed by a legal advisor prior to signing. Many such agreements can have serious, surprising and often unforeseen outcomes when not properly structured.
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