Recession Preventing Couples from Divorcing
50% of marriages end in divorce. This statistic is no longer accurate. According to the Financial Post, the divorce rate is 41%. But, why are divorce rates decreasing? Is it really because couples are happier or could it be that couples actually can’t afford to divorce?
Divorce has become a lot easier within the court system and there are many resources available, including unbundled services by family law lawyers, to help aid in the financial and psychological burden divorce can bring to individuals. However, with tough financial times still affecting many families in Canada, divorce may continue to be out of their financial reach. Therefore, couples may be staying together to ride out the financial crisis and consider divorcing when their wallets can better handle the financial beating.
There are many costs that go along with separation and divorce. On top of lawyer fees, individuals may need to take time off work to finalize plans, they must split their assets and liabilities between both parties, and they must determine support payments and custody arrangements if children are involved.
Recession Taught Newlyweds to be Financially Responsible
According to Experian Consumer Services, newlyweds married after the recession (2009) are more likely to discuss financials with their spouse than those married before and are therefore, more financially responsible:
- 75% of newlyweds discuss small everyday purchases (compared to 59% pre-recession couples),
- 61% of newlyweds discussed their credit scores before getting married (compared to 35% of pre-recession couples),
- $256 is the average maximum amount newlyweds spend before checking with their spouse (compared to $1,022 of pre-recession couples),
- 82% of newlyweds discuss financial goals with their spouse at least monthly (compared to 65% of pre-recession couples).
The financial crisis is not only keeping unhappy couples from divorcing because of financial strain, it’s also keeping happy couples from divorcing from a result of financial strain.
We can only conclude from this information that even as the economy improves, money will be a less common factor of divorce in the future. Does this mean the divorce rates will continue to fall below 41%? According to Solutions for Life in 2013, 5% of divorces were a result of money issues. Will family law firms continue to see a decrease in divorces?
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Kelsey Vere
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