It's not uncommon for couples to stay married for the sake of their kids, but it seems there's a growing trend of couples who are staying hitched because of finances. An article in the Phoenix Examiner discusses how couples who don't have kids remain in the same home because of their shared mortgage, car payments and other cost-of-living expenses. One woman said: “We were married thirty years before we decided to live separate lives. I was all for a divorce and so was he but our accountant gave us two financial scenarios. Divorced, we would lose money. By staying together, we got to keep more of our funds and our health insurance coverage as a married couple.”

One marriage therapist in the article says that separated couples living together is more common than people realize. This is why statistical data is so tricky because you can also make the argument that there are couples out there who have been living together for many years who share assets, etc. who aren't married. So are hollow marriages still "marriages"? What are your thoughts?

Labels: commentary, money, real people, work