Seniors these days prefer to cohabitate rather than marry. A few years ago, a survey conducted to understand seniors’ views on dating and remarriage. The survey revealed that between 2000 and 2006, there was a 50% increase in the number of American seniors who opted for cohabitation over marriage. The question that therefore arises is: why are more and more seniors shying away from marrying? Our own research revealed that several different reasons are responsible for this change. While some seniors do not enter into matrimony because they do not want to take on the responsibility of another person, others find it hard to forget their past and make a new start. However, some of the reasons we came across were truly surprising.
Commitment Is an Issue for All Age Groups, Not Just the Young
Many seniors don’t wish to curb their freedom with the confines of a marriage. While they’re willing to be in committed, serious relationships, they want to live life on their own terms without interference from a spouse. A live-in arrangement allows them the perfect equation where the relationship can bloom without letting either spouse encroach into the other’s life.
While Young People Look for Love, Seniors Look for Companionship
By the time, people reach their senior years, they have mostly seen it all — in most cases, they have already been through marriage and many seniors also believe that they have already had their shot at true love. Thus, most seniors see no concrete reason to get into a legal relationship with another person. The excitement around relationships and marriages is not as high among seniors as it is among young people. More importantly, unlike young people, who feel marriage is important to make one feel secure, seniors are happy to simply cohabitate. Most seniors look for companionship and not a life partner.
It Is Not Uncommon for Children to Come in the Way of Love
You may think that seniors being the eldest ones in the family must have complete freedom to live as they like. However, you will be surprised to know that many seniors do not enter into marriages simply because their adult children are not happy with the idea. Yes, many seniors let go of their desire to marry someone, even when they have found love again, simply because they do not want to create a rift in the family or go against their children.
Remarrying Can Create Legal Trouble for Grandchildren
Grandparents dote after their grandchildren and are usually willing to do anything to keep them happy. It is, therefore, not very surprising that many seniors choose not to remarry because they want to protect their grandchildren’s interest. While seniors can always remarry and create trust funds for their grandchildren, the entire process usually involves making many visits to an attorney, changing wills and revising trusts. Thus, most seniors find it easier to simply live with the person they like instead of marrying them and creating legal complications.
Retaining Social Benefits Is More Important than Remarrying
In old age, financial security is a crucial thing — seniors don’t want to rely on anyone for their needs. Not many people know this but according to the Social Security Administration guidelines, those who marry again before the age of 60 lose out on pension and social benefits provided to them by their former spouse. However, those who remarry after they turn 60 can retain these benefits. Thus, many elderly people do not remarry simply because they do not want to lose on the pension or social security benefits left to them by their former partner.
Seniors Also Know a Thing or Two About Being Friends with Benefits
Our generation is quite familiar with the term ‘friends with benefits.’ We believe we gave birth to the idea. The truth is this concept has existed for a long time. Think hard, we have all had an uncle, aunt or grandparent who was especially close to one particular friend who accompanied them to most social functions. It is not uncommon for seniors to want to keep their love life under the wraps. Sometimes, seniors do so to avoid judgement. Other times, they simply don’t want to get into the details and explain everything to everyone. It makes sense too.
Keep watching to hear the most surprising reason why more seniors are hooking up – it often comes down to money! Meanwhile, if you are enjoying this video, please take a moment to like and subscribe to our channel.
They Want to Avoid Expensive Divorces
In the United States as well as all over all the world, divorces can turn out to be extremely costly. Well, Jeff Bezos had to pay his wife $38 billion in the divorce settlement. Unbelievable, right? Forget about the settlement money, divorce lawyers also charge exorbitant fees. It is believed that divorce attorneys in the U.S. charge anywhere between $7,500 and $12,500 for a divorce case. Since seniors already know well that divorces can be extremely costly, they decide to nullify even the possibility of divorce by staying unmarried.
Many Seniors Don’t Want to Risk Their Alimony Payments
Alimony pay-outs may or may not continue once a person remarries. In the cases that they do not, people are unwilling to remarry as they don’t want to risk the income. This may be especially true in the case of relatively new relationships, where a person may love the spouse but doesn’t know them enough to gamble the steady money from a previous marriage’s alimony.
Seniors Don’t Want to Compromise Their Credit Scores Because of Their Partners
Credit rating is a huge factor for individuals of every age – it impacts your financial health in a big way. It takes years to build a good credit score, and seniors don’t want their scores going down because of their partners’ not-so-great credit history. The world is super competitive, and while relationships are extremely important, people no longer find it a fair trade-off to mess up their finances for gratification on the personal front.
Trust Issues Can Keep Seniors from Wanting to Enter into Relationships and Marriage
Bad marriages often leave people financially drained. However, more importantly, they leave people emotionally drained. Seniors who have already been through a bad marriage usually have trust issues and do not want to make the same mistake again. Seniors, in particular those who have gone through a divorce, simply do not want to re-enter the world of dating and marriage. Bad experiences lead to trust issues for most of us and seniors are no different.
Many Seniors Simply Don’t Want to Go Through the Hassle of Being Married Again
Let’s face it; marriage isn’t easy. The best marriages also take a lot of time, effort, and compromise. Many seniors don’t want to go through all of that again. They’re happy with the way things are, and they don’t wish to put themselves through the trouble again. This is especially true for seniors who feel relationships can be just as strong without the marriage tag.
Many Seniors Cannot Afford to Compromise Their Healthcare Benefits with Their Marital Status
Healthcare programs that cover medical expenses, such as Medicaid, take many factors into consideration. While your medical expenses may be covered to a good extent as a single individual, they might not continue to be covered should you get hitched. A spouse’s extra income may disqualify an individual, which can be especially difficult if the extra income is insufficient to cover medical bills. Also, a spouse’s assets are considered in every application since authorities consider he/she will help cover medical expenses, which is far from true in every case.
The Tax Structure No Longer Benefits Married Couples over Cohabitating Couples
The past tax structure resulted in higher taxes for a couple cohabiting as compared to a married couple. But the structure has changed, and today, both married and unmarried couples face equal standard deductions. While the deductions are similar, married couples have the added legal responsibility of jointly filing taxes.
Seniors Don’t Want to Hurt Their Children’s Chances of Receiving Financial Aid
Seniors with children who are about to go to college in the next few years refrain from remarrying as the household income could increase substantially and, in turn, reduce the chances of the children receiving college financial aid. Financial aid applications consider both parents’ income, even if one is not a biological parent.
They Don’t Want to Risk Their Military Benefits by Remarrying
People who have lost their spouses while they were serving in the military are eligible for several benefits, including pension, healthcare, and discounted shopping at military bases. But one forfeits these benefits when he/she remarries, which definitely is a consideration for seniors who receive these benefits as they contemplate remarriage.
With Cohabitation, Seniors Are Free to Pursue Relationships Without the Traditional Norms
When you take marriage out of the picture, seniors are free to pursue relationships that make them happy, without the baggage of what society, their children, and other relatives may feel about them. In cohabitation, seniors are free to explore unconventional relationships outside the construct of traditional marriages.
Seniors Are (Justifiably) Apprehensive About Paying Their Partners’ Medical Bills
It’s no secret that medical bills amount to the most substantial expenses for seniors. While age itself leads to several conditions and ailments that can dent your wallet, those who suffer from long-term illnesses are financially stuck. Healthcare expenses are sky-high, and in times such as these where people are scared of their own medical bills, it makes sense why someone would avoid getting married to stay away from being responsible for someone else’s medical bills.
In a nutshell, seniors are increasingly becoming more open to the idea of cohabitation over marriage. The reasons for this change in attitude are many, right from safeguarding financial interests to avoiding the hassle of getting two families involved, and many seniors are happier in relationships that work for them without the need for an official marriage stamp.
Do you think there are other reasons why seniors are hooking up rather than getting married? If yes, do let us know in the comments; we would love to hear from you. If you liked this video, don’t forget to hit the like and subscribe button as well as the bell icon to stay updated with our latest content.
