Advertisement

Shacked up, cashed up

A new study by the University of Wyoming has found that, on average, couples who live together before getting hitched are wealthier down the track. Researchers studied the data of baby boomers who became part of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 when they left high school. They found that couples who shacked up early in their relationshi were twice as wealthy as those who didn’t – despite starting with less.

Study co-author Dr Matthew Painter says it could be because “many cohabiters view marriage as something that happens after they achieve a certain level of financial security in life.

Falling short of this level casts doubts over future relationship stability and may lead couples to delay marriage.”