Average marriage age in your area...

[SarahLovesJS]

Date: 8/27/2008 1:50:33 PM
Author: vespergirl

Date: 8/27/2008 1:36:57 PM

Author: oobiecoo

Date: 8/27/2008 11:55:30 AM

Author: vespergirl

I think that generally in areas where people go to school for longer, they get married later. I live in a DC suburb where it''s common to have at least a Master''s or Doctorate, so most people don''t get married at all before late 20s, but the average is more like early 30s. I think that in more working-class areas, the age is younger, because maybe people are earning salaries and getting homes after high school, so they''re ready to start their families as well. I also think that in more religious areas, like the Bible Belt, people are urged to marry younger since premarital sex is frowned upon there.



My personal experience is this - I got married for the first time when I was 23 and my ex-husband was 27 (we''re from NYC and Los Angeles, respectively) and everybody was shocked that we were getting married so young, before grad school. That marriage lasted until I was 25. When I got married to my currect husband, I was 29 and he was 34, and that''s more of the average in our community.

I wouldn''t say that''s necessarily always the case. Many of the Christians in this area just seem to place more value on starting families younger because kids are a blessing and all of that. I agree that a few people get married because they don''t want to wait for sex, but I don''t think thats the norm.

Good point Oobiecoo - I''ve actually never lived in that part of the country, so I was just making a generalization based on what I''ve heard from friends living in Kentucky & Tennessee

And as far as having kids when you''re younger, sometimes I wish that I had started earlier, because my almost-2-yr-old son is constantly running circles around me - I think I would have had more energy to keep up with him in my mid-20s

FI is from DC-area and I''ve from Central VA and we''ll be joining you in the educated longer married young crowd.

 

[aliciagirl]

I would say between 18-20. And I'm not kidding even slightly. Most of the people I know from home are already married with kids! And I feel like an old maid... at 22!

I'm from a very rural hometown where very few go to college, and most who do go to community college and still live at home. For some reason, moving out on your own in frowned upon and I think that has a big impact on why people are getting married so young. SO already has his bachelor's and I'm almost done with a professional degree so we're the odd ones out when it comes to people we know. People also have a HUGE stigma about getting a divorce... and most of my married friends unfortunately would probably be better off getting one, but won't.