Average Age of 1st Marriage in L.A.? (home, living)

[CantWait2Leave]

Originally Posted by Charles

There is statistical evidence that marrying at a younger age increases the likelihood of divorce. Not sure why, could be higher economic stresses, less maturity, less willingness to take responsibilities, or less opportunities to get all the "action" out of your system. When I was single, I was a kid in a candy store; Now that I'm married, I feel like a diabetic kid in a candy store. I got the seven year itch about six years and 51 weeks early. Also, some people may be pressured to marry in the "right" faith - a constraint - rather than marry the right person.

U.S. divorce rates: for various faith groups, age groups and geographical areas

divorce rate increases with younger aged marriages

Evangelicals: Why Do We Have the Highest Divorce Rate? - Associated Content - associatedcontent.com

Baptists have highest divorce rate

Bible Belt Leads U.S. In Divorces

I think many young people get divorced because they didn't date their spouse for very long. I see people getting married and they barely know the person. I dated my husband for 5 1/2 years before we got married. I never experienced the difficult first year of marriage that many people experience because I knew him so well because we had been together so long. I also think many young virgins get married just so they can have sex then a few years down the road they find out that you need more than sex to make a marriage last and so they end up divorced.

People always ask me why I didn't live with my husband before marriage like I'm an idiot for not doing that, but statistics show that people who live together before marriage are more likely to get divorced so I don't understand why people think it's the opposite.

Discovery Health :: Debunking Divorce Myths

Living Together Before Marriage: Divorce Research Study Says Cohabitation May Increase Divorce (http://divorce.suite101.com/article.cfm/living_together_before_marriage - broken link)

Sociological Reasons Not to Live Together

Living Together Before Tying The Knot Can Spoil Marriage

[Lifeshadower]

Well, as a 20 year old who was born and raised here in LA, with most of my friends in the 20-26 age range, I can say I only know of ONE marriage and that's because he got the girl pregnant and felt wrong to not be married (of course, it isn't the most successful marriage, but who am I to judge?). He was 23 and she was 21.

I really do think its a generational thing. There's a HUGE stigma against being married and having kids nowadays, and its really taken a hold in my demographic. In fact, teenage pregnancies are also down (eerie, considering how sexed up our society has supposedly become). Being married and having kids, at least for males of my age, is seen as the the end of the your life. However, I do know a lot of people who have been in long term relationships living with each other, but still no kids. I WAS one of those people, but am glad am not anymore (so I can mess around more).

While you old people argue about it, let us young people enjoy ourselves

[JTGJR]

Originally Posted by Lifeshadower

While you old people argue about it, let us young people enjoy ourselves

As an "old person" I actually like that. Been married 25-years and we were both 26 when we married so it appears that we average out in Charles' post. I can understand, however, why the age of marriage is increasing. It's kinda hard hard to really get to know someone through Facebook IM and phone text messaging .

(Both of which, BTW, I partake in)

[BRinSM]

Originally Posted by JTGJR

I can understand, however, why the age of marriage is increasing. It's kinda hard hard to really get to know someone through Facebook IM and phone text messaging .

...not to mention earn enough money to be able to support a family.

[AnUnidentifiedMale]

In Forbes' "Best Cities For Singles", the L.A. area was ranked as having the largest percentage of single people.

Methodology - Forbes.com

[Ennea4]

All your guys' posts are so interesting!

I just don't get how we're all expected to find the right person within the same ten years of our lives (our 20s). Different people find the right person at different times!

Also, I don't think that you should wait so that you can "mess around" more, but rather wait because you know in your heart that you haven't found exactly the right person yet.

[Ennea4]

Originally Posted by Mommy24kids

I wonder if someone has stats on what the average age is for those "living together" I bet the numbers would be much lower if you factor that in.

Great point!
And sOoO true. I just had a girl come in today to see if she wanted to sublease from me (she was a couple years younger than me; about 20) and she was looking at my 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom place for her and her boyfriend. She started complaining about the two twin size beds, saying that they would need a full size bed, "of course." I'm thinking, dude, why don't you guys just get married? ~And if it's b/c you don't like eachother enough for that - THEN DON'T BE SLEEPING TOGETHER. Lol.

[Ennea4]

Originally Posted by drshang

The thing is the percentage of young, independent minded people who move here is small compared to the percentage of largely traditional, Hispanic or second generation Hispanic immigrants, who will, on average, marry much younger than upper middle class transplants from the midwest. If you're looking as to why the numbers are not as high as you think, one must consider the fact that the group "you" think is very meaningful is actually a very small, almost statistically insignificant, part of the population.

Another really really good point. I do hang out with mostly white, upper middle class young adults, most of whom have moved to L.A. from other states like me.

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by Ennea4

In Michigan tons of people get engaged snr year of college, and then married right after they graduate from undergrad school. So I know a ton of people who get married at like age 21/22/23. But here in L.A. it doesn't seem to be that way . . .

Well, I think you have just been given what the national averages are. Remember there are people living all over the state, some do not consider education past high school, they normally marry younger and how about the kids in the inner cities that marry in their teens. None of us can judge what age people normally marry by what we see among friends and co workers.

Nita

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by Ennea4

[Thanks for that] Yeah, but that's taken way back from 2000/2003; do you think that the average age of first marriage has been pushed back sense then??

average all over the country has probably been pushed back some as well as average age for having a first child..

Nita