1. As our college graduates become increasingly
more encumbered by their student loan debt, an
unlikely victim is emerging: marriage. Becoming
bound to one another through the sacred union of
marriage is being put off by many in order to
spend time paying down their student loan debt.
As a result, the average age for marriage is
increasing, and new generations are being
destined to grow up with older parents.
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2. While the implications of this "older" family are not yet known, little
guesswork needs to be done to predict what a few of those problems
may be The Average Age for Marriage According to IHS Global Insight,
the median age for marriage in 2007 was 27 5 years old for males and 25
3. 6 years old for females However, the same research firm found those
ages increased to 28 7 and 26
4. 5 respectively in 2011 While those numbers show roughly a year
increase for both sexes, the fact that such an increase occurred over a
mere four years is what's truly astonishing Furthermore, that dramatic
increase took place during an economic downturn and during a time
when college students were graduating with record-breaking student
loans
5. As our current students and recent graduates contemplate how they will
repay their college debt while unemployed or underemployed, the
question they're asking isn't, "Will you marry me?" but instead it's, "Can
we get married after I pay off my student loans?" The Risks of an Older
Marriage But the choice to postpone marriage in order to satisfy student
loan debt isn't unwise When financial problems rank number one in the
somekeyword, our educated youth are making prudent decisions to put
marriage off However, such decisions do not come without risks
6. One of the largest risks associated with marrying at a later age is related
to beginning a family later in life The Center for Bioethics at the
University of Pennsylvania revealed that fertility rates drop significantly
after women turn the age of 35 Additionally, women over 40 subject
themselves to double the risk for miscarriage during the first trimester of
pregnancy when compared to pregnant women of 35 or younger
7. When student loans postpone the creation of families, it's not difficult to
see how they may possibly contribute to future pregnancy complications
in our college-educated youth of today Furthermore, having children later
in life also leads to the inevitable outcome of kids being raised by older
adults Having a baby at 40 years old means parents will be western sky
legally responsible for their children until both parents are nearly of
retirement age
8. When past generations welcomed grandchildren into the world around
their retirement, our nation's future parents may still be raising children of
their own Our college-educated youth are facing obstacles unlike any
experienced by past generations: they are being told they must go to
college for a career, they're entering their 20's with unprecedented debt,
and now they're starting their families later on in life
9. Student loan debt is sinking its teeth into facets far away from the
lending world, with the institution of marriage and the concept of the
family being perfect examples of that
