Young, unmarried couples are moving in together at rapid rates. They’re doing it for love but also for money. Last year, over 11 percent of Americans aged 18 to 24 cohabitated with a romantic partner who wasn’t a spouse, the highest ever, according to the Census Bureau.
That’s almost 650,000 more than before the pandemic, about 3.2 million people. Saving money served as the main reason for young couples who turned to live together sooner than later, with inflation increasing the price of everything from gas to groceries and rent prices closing in on record highs.
A recent Realtor.com analysis found that money was the leading cause behind deciding to move in together for 80 percent of Gen Z couples. Almost one in four respondents said living with their partner allowed them to save over $1,000 each month. For example, Duke University graduate student Kerry Eller moved in with her boyfriend after he moved from Boston last summer at 22. They pay $1,200 in rent for a house they share with three other roommates.
Eller said, “The cost of rent is just sky high in Durham compared to at least grad-student salaries. Financially, it would suck to be in two different places, but also, I feel like it wouldn’t really have made sense for him to move here and live in a separate apartment.”
The number of unmarried Americans living with a partner has increased for decades since relationship arrangements have become more fluid and taboos have been dismantled. The COVID-19 lockdown constraints also made more people eager to enter a new life phase. Galena Rhoades, a psychologist at the University of Denver, said, “When there’s a stressful event, especially one like a pandemic that also requires social isolation, we see people making more moves in relationships. The pandemic, in some ways, made it easier to move in together and harder to break up.”
According to Fenaba Addo, a researcher at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, young couples are more likely to move in together because they’re less financially secure, so splitting bills seems like a good deal. However, while splitting costs sounds good, those who rushed to live together realize their relationship may not have been ready for cohabitation.
Realtor.com discovered that 42 percent of respondents who moved in with their romantic partner ultimately regretted doing so. New York City-based artist Max Kulchinsky signed a lease with his girlfriend for a $ 2,200-a-month apartment in Brooklyn after only dating for one year. Kulchinsky said with expenses in New York City being so high, living alone didn’t make sense financially, and neither he nor his girlfriend wanted roommates. He also thought the couple could make it through anything after surviving the pandemic.
Unfortunately, New York City life started to stir up again after the pandemic and exposed some differences between the couple. They broke up in May 2022, months after renewing their lease. Kulchinsky’s girlfriend moved out, and he had to stretch his finances to cover everything.
Living together may be a great way to cut costs and split expenses. However, you should ensure that your relationship can handle living together so you won’t be in another horrible situation.
