Wife Time Is Shrinking

Women are spending a shrinking share of their lives as wives, according to an analysis by the Center for Retirement Research. Examining data from the Health and Retirement Study, the researchers analyzed four birth cohorts—the original HRS cohort (born from 1931 to 1941), War Babies (1942 to 1947), Early Boomers (1948 to 1953) and Mid Boomers (1954 to 1959). Here are the researchers' estimates of the percentage of life, from age 20, women will have spent as wives by cohort...

Percentage of life from age 20 spent as a wife
HRS cohort: 72%
War Babies: 69%
Early Boomers: 56%
Mid Boomers: 51%

Behind the decline in years spent as a wife are several factors—the rising age at first marriage, the greater prevalence of singlehood, and more divorce. Because women are spending a growing share of their lives without husbands, "it probably makes sense to explore their savings and investment behavior separately from men," conclude the researchers.

Source: Center for Retirement Research, Do Women Still Spend Most of Their Lives Married?

Decline of White, Married Christians

Percentage of American adults who are white, married, and Christian...

2015: 28%
2010: 31%
2000: 35%
1990: 46%
1980: 56%

Source: Public Religion Research Institute, White, Married Christians Decline in U.S.

Marital Status of Men Aged 30-to-34 Depends on Earnings

For men, the 30-to-34 age group is the age of marrying. That's when the percentage of men who are currently married rises above 50 percent. But that's an average. In fact, the marital status of men in the age group depends on how much they earn, with the married share rising in lock-step with earnings. (The relationship between earnings and marital status is not found for their female counterparts.) Here are the 2014 statistics...

Men aged 30 to 34 who are currently married, by earnings
Total men 30 to 34:   50.4%
Less than $5,000:     26.3%
$5,000 to $14,999:    31.1%
$15,000 to $24,999:  37.8%
$25,000 to $39,999:  53.0%
$40,000 to $74,999:  61.2%
$75,000 to $99,999:  66.4%
$100,000 or more:     72.7%

Source: Census Bureau, Families and Living Arrangements

The Single Years

Percentage of men and women aged 25 to 29 who have never married...

Men aged 25 to 29
2014: 68%
2000: 52%
1980: 33%
1960: 21%

Women aged 25 to 29
2014: 54%
2000: 39%
1980: 21%
1960: 11%

Source: Bureau of the Census, Families and Living Arrangements—Historical Tables

Wives Are Better Educated than Husbands

Among the nation's married couples, wives are more educated than husbands in 20.7 percent. This figure exceeds, for the first time, the 19.9 percent in which husbands are more educated than wives, according to a Pew Research Center analysis of census data.

Among newlyweds, the trend is even more pronounced, with 27 percent of wives more educated than husbands and only 15 percent of husbands more educated than wives. Despite their greater educational attainment, says Pew, only 39 percent of better-educated newlywed wives earned more than their husbands. The 58 percent majority earned less.

Source: Pew Research Center, Record Share of Wives Are More Educated than their Husbands

Social Security's Declining Role

For baby boomers and younger generations of married couples, Social Security will not replace as much household income as it did for older generation. That's because of the rise of working women and the way benefits are calculated for married couples, according to a report by the Center for Retirement Research (CRR) at Boston College.

In the past, when most wives did not work, Social Security benefits replaced a larger portion of total household income because nonworking wives received a benefit check as well. The nonworking wife's benefit was equal to one-half of her husband's benefit. The CRR report provides an example: if the husband's benefit  replaced 40 percent of his earnings (his earnings = total household income), then the nonworking wife's benefit replaced another 20 percent of his earnings for a 60 percent replacement rate. What a deal!

Unfortunately, that deal has gone the way of the dodo bird. When both husband and wife are in the labor force, the wife's earnings boost household income. But if the wife's Social Security benefits replace 40 percent of her earnings and the husband's benefits replace 40 percent of his earnings, then Social Security replaces only 40 percent of the couple's total household income.

"The drop in replacement rates for couples will lead to a declining role for Social Security,"concludes the CRR report, warning that "retirees will have to rely increasingly on other sources of retirement income."

Source: Center for Retirement Research at Boston College, How Does Women Working Affect Social Security Replacement Rates?

Never-Married Men

Percentage of men aged 25 to 29 who have never married, 1970 and 2012...

1970: 19%
2012: 63%

Source: Census Bureau, America's Families and Living Arrangements

Births Outside of Marriage

Among parents aged 15 to 44, percent who have had a child outside of marriage...

Men: 47.3%
Women: 49.3%

Source: National Center for Health Statistics, Fertility of Men and Women Aged 15-44 in the United States: National Survey of Family Growth, 2006-2010

First Union: Cohabitation or Marriage?

The First Union. That's the term used by the National Center for Health Statistics to describe the first time a young couple sets up house together. Over the past few decades the most common arrangement for the first union has shifted from marriage to cohabitation.

Among women aged 15 to 44 in 2006-10, nearly half (48 percent) reported that their first union was cohabitation and a smaller 23 percent reported marriage. (The remaining women in the age group had not yet experienced a first union.) In 1995, 34 percent of women aged 15 to 44 reported that their first union was cohabitation and a slightly larger 39 percent reported marriage.

Although cohabitation is more common than marriage in every educational attainment group, there are interesting differences in the numbers. Among women with a high school diploma and no further education, 62 percent reported cohabitation as their first union. Among women with a bachelor's degree, the figure was a smaller 47 percent--but still greater than the 35 percent who reported marriage.

Source: National Center for Health Statistics, First Premarital Cohabitation in the United States: 2006-2010 National Survey of Family Growth

Working Women More Likely to be Dependents

Among the nation's employed, women are much more likely than men to have their health insurance provided by someone else's employer, This is called dependent coverage and is typically provided by a spouse. Here is the percentage of workers aged 26 to 64 who have employer-provided health insurance coverage through somebody else's employer...

Aged 26 to 44
Men: 8.8%
Women: 21.4%

Aged 45 to 64
Men: 12.7%
Women: 23.3%

Source: Census Bureau, Employment Based Health Insurance: 2010

Earning Power of Wives

Working wives now provide more than one-third of the income of married couples. Here is the percentage of the income of married-couple families contributed by working wives...

2010: 37.6%
2000: 33.5%
1990: 30.7%
1980: 26.7%
1970: 26.6%

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Women in the Labor Force: A Databook (PDF)

Life is What Happens

Current marital status of women aged 40 to 44...

In a union

In first marriage: 49.6%

In second or higher marriage: 13.6% 

Not married, living with partner: 7.2%

Not in a union

Never married, not cohabiting: 10.2%

Former married, not cohabiting: 19.4%

Source: National Center for Health Statistics, First Marriages in the United States: Data from the 2006-2010 National Survey of Family Growth

Marital Status of Same-Sex Couples

Same-sex couples are increasingly likely to identify their household relationship as married rather than unmarried partner, according to the Census Bureau. Among the nation's 605,000 same-sex couples, 28 percent reported their relationship as spouse, according to the 2011 American Community Survey--greater than the number of legally married same-sex couples.

Non-Hispanic White Married Couples

Non-Hispanic whites as a share of married couples with children under age 18 at home: 65%
Non-Hispanic whites as a share of married couples without children under age 18 at home: 80%

Source: Census Bureau, 2012 Current Population Survey

Number of Times Married

Among the nation's 169 million ever-married men and women, 75 percent have been married once, 20 percent have been married twice, and 5 percent have been married three or more times.

Source: Census Bureau, 2011 American Community Survey

Median Age of Marriage Hits New Highs

The median age at which men and women marry for the first time continued to climb in 2012.

• Men now marry for the first time at a median age of 28.6, up from 26.8 in 2000 and a low of 22.5 years in the 1950s. 
• Women now marry for the first time at a median age of 26.6, up from 25.1 in 2000 and a low of 20.1 years in the 1950s.

Source: Census Bureau, Families and Living Arrangements, Marital Status

Keeping Secrets

Do you keep secrets from your spouse? Many Americans do, according to an AARP survey. Seventeen percent say they have not told their spouse/partner about a purchase they made in the past 12 months. Younger adults are most likely to keep secrets, with 23 percent hiding a purchase from a spouse/partner. Among adults aged 50 or older, a smaller 12 percent have hidden a purchase.

Source: AARP, AARP Bulletin Survey on Financial Honesty

Who's Getting Married?

Every year since 2008, the American Community Survey has collected data on marriage and divorce in the United States. Here are some of the findings from the 2011 survey...

Men who got married in 2011
Number: 2,144,467
Median age: 31.6 years
College graduate: 28.5%
In labor force: 88.9%
Has a child under age 18: 33.6%
Homeowner: 50.0%

Women who got married in 2011
Number: 2,096,359
Median age: 29.5 years
College graduate: 32.9%
In labor force: 76.7%
Has a child under age 18: 36.1%
Homeowner: 50.3%

Source: Census Bureau, 2011 American Community Survey

Many Wives Depend on Husband for Health Insurance

Among married women under age 65, fully 72 percent are covered by employment-based health insurance, but only 36 percent have employment-based health insurance in their own name.

Source: Census Bureau, Health Insurance

Married Couples: The 49%

Only 49 percent of the nation's households are headed by married couples, according to the 2012 Current Population Survey, down from 53 percent in 2000.

Number (in 000s) and percent of households by household type, 2012
Total households: 121,084 (100%)
Married couples: 58,949 (49%)
Female-headed families: 15,669 (13%)
Male-headed families: 5,888 (5%)
People living alone: 33,189 (27%)
People living with nonrelatives: 7,389 (6%)

Source: Census Bureau, Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance in the United States: 2011--Detailed Tables