New Studies Show Cohabitating Before Marriage is a Very Bad Idea [+video]

Photo Credit: The Daily Signal More young adults are opting to cohabit rather than marry or to delay marriage for financial reasons, such as debt, according to a recent study published in Demography. However, National Marriage Week presents a good opportunity to review how rigorous, long-term studies have measured the substantial impact of marriage on financial stability, as well as relationship longevity and health outcomes. . .

•Even after marrying, women who cohabitated prior to marriage are more apt to separate or divorce than those who did not. One study demonstrated that for women who lived with their partners before marriage, it was 33 percent more likely for their marriages to result in separation or divorce.

•Men who cohabit tend to make less money than their married counterparts. Married men tend to make more money than their unmarried guy friends, according to a study based on the 1990 U.S. Census. Once husbands and wives reach pre-retirement age, another study found never-married cohabiters had less wealth than married couples—78 percent less. . .

•Cohabiting couples report more depression and more alcohol problems than married couples. Even when controlling for race, age and gender, cohabiting individuals reported higher levels of depression than married ones, 2.8 points according to one study. In another study, cohabiting individuals were three times more likely to report having problems with alcohol consumption than those who were married, as well as 25 percent more problems than single people who did not cohabit.

(Read more from the new studies showing cohabitating before marriage is a bad idea HERE)

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