Posted on 09/06/2017 7:15:26 PM PDT by BJ1
Looking ahead to the next phase of life can seem pretty dreadful if you can’t stand the person who you’ll be spending it with.
That may be what some boomers are facing. Among U.S. adults ages 50 and older, the divorce rate has roughly doubled since the 1990s, according to a recent Pew Research Center report.
Statistically speaking we’re healthier and probably going to be living a lot longer — possibly 30 years longer — than average retirees once did. The surge in late-in-life — or “gray” — divorce is one possibly unintended consequence of this so-called longevity bonus.
Read: Why your retirement may not be so horrible after all
“What’s pushing gray divorce is people are living longer and they feel more entitled to living fully. They’ve contributed to raising children, they want an emotional journey, it’s their time now,” says Lili Vasileff, a certified financial planner and president of Divorce and Money Matters, which specializes in divorce financial planning. “They may have (decades) ahead and don’t want to be unhappy anymore.”
This is combined with a reduced stigma of divorce, both in terms of religion and society’s attitudes. People also feel more financially stable — especially if both partners have careers. But there are some serious downsides to divorce at this stage of life.
“Gray divorcees tend to be less financially secure than married and widowed adults, particularly among women,” Pew says. “And living alone at older ages can be detrimental to one’s financial comfort and, for men, their satisfaction with their social lives.”
(Excerpt) Read more at marketwatch.com ...
The assumption that baby boomers will live into their 80s and 90s is not what I’m seeing. Lots are dying in their 50s and 60s.
The idea that spouses assist each other in mutual sanctification on their way to redemption in Jesus Christ is lost on most souls. No thought of eternity interferes with their “lust for life” in this valley of tears.
Meanwhile Russia, China, the Norks, and Persians are gearing up to nuke us out of existence.
Will He know us when we arrive at our real and final destination?
So being married results in a 25% income reduction.
I love my wife, who is also my soul mate and my best friend. Wouldn’t leave her for anything.
More important is that government benefit and welfare schemes encourage it.
People divorce because one or the other says to themselves they don’t want to do marriage anymore in most cases. It’s a choice to throw in the towel. Reasons don’t matter as they are vast, the bottom line is still the same...and it’s usually just one that says “I”m not doing this anymore”.
Then those were the ones that actually were miserable. There are those that just want a younger wife with fewer wrinkles, say around 30.
Remarrying would be foolish for them.
I have a wife like that too. Some of us just luck out.
...”they feel more entitled”....
Sounds like the youth aren’t the only ones ‘feeling entitled’.
65 and single. I really wish I had a decent wife and envy you all who do. I just don’t have the guts to try it again.
The old joke was; "Why do husbands die before their wives? Because they want to!" Well, now it seems to be "divorce before death". But the article doesn't really provide any verifiable explanation for "gray divorce", just opinion and financial consequences.
The first piece of hard data I'd like to see is which party initiates the majority of "gray divorce", husband or wife. The answer should be fundamental to real research. But the article carefully refrains from that nugget of information.
Mostly those who are wealthy enough not to mind the loss of income.
But let's say there was a widow of a retired military member who paid into SBP. If they remarry before age 55, the annuity goes away.
You’re truly blessed. God bless both of you.
Sad!
Friend of mine is a doctor and told me there is no higher STD rate than the Villages! Icky!
You’ve conflated SSI with straight-up Social Security. Re-read your link.
Then they don’t have to marry me. Just adopt me. Take me in as a stray. Keep me around for my witty charm. I make a great chauffeur. I cook breakfast too. So just how wealthy are my found loves to be?
That’s not the way I read it. In fact, once both retire each will draw the highest benefit.
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