You may have heard that the divorce rate is falling. While this is true for some age groups, it’s also been found that certain age brackets have a rising divorce rate. The most common example here is that those who are 50 and over are seeing an increase in gray divorce cases.
In many situations, these individuals are empty-nesters. They had children who have now all moved off to college. Why might the divorce rate for this age group be increasing?
They drifted apart
One thing that can sometimes happen is that parents will drift apart as a couple. They were simply so focused on being parents, and they stopped being as close to one another. They often don’t even know that this has happened until the children leave home, and suddenly they feel like their relationship has changed.
They were staying together for the kids
Another potential reason is if the parents were only staying together because of the children. Maybe they believed that the stability having married parents provides would be best for the kids. Whether or not the children realized it, the parents may have known for a while that they were planning to get divorced once they felt it wouldn’t have a negative impact on their children.
They’re living longer
Another reason that some experts have pointed to is the rising life expectancy in the United States. As people live longer, they have a greater stretch of time after the kids leave home, and they may use this period in life to reevaluate what they want and what they’d like their life to look like.
If you and your spouse are getting divorced, you may have significant financial assets, even if you don’t have to deal with child custody issues. Be very sure that you understand all of your legal options.