For Richer, For Poorer
Money, Freedom, and the American Marriage
An award-winning, nationally-syndicated personal finance columnist, Liz Pulliam Weston writes:
* The median net worth of married-couple households in the latest Census Bureau wealth study, conducted in 2002, was $101,975. For single men, median wealth was $23,700. For single women, $20,217.
* A 15-year study of 9,000 people found that during that time, people who married and stayed married built up nearly twice the net worth of people who stayed single. …when…other factors are held constant…income and education…the fact that they were married contributed to a 4% annual rise in these couples’ wealth.
* Wealth declines typically started four years before a divorce was final…the breakup ultimately reduced the typical person’s net worth by 77% of that of the average single person.
According to Nielsen//NetRatings, Liz Pulliam is the most-read personal finance columnist on the Internet.
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