There are many reasons for this, including growth in an aging population but this is not the main reason. For most in this age category it goes beyond life span, many have waited for their children to move on from the family home, work retirement, less stigma over divorce and increased lifespan to name a few.
Most of those contemplating “grey divorce” feel like any years of life they have left are too precious to spend with the wrong person. Despite the desire to separate, most older couples have a relatively lesser degree of acrimony. They don’t sweat the small details, and they just want to move on. Therefore, these older divorces tend to move more quickly and tend not to get tied up in court or mediation. Both partners know resources are finite and both need to need to ensure they can live off their proceeds without it going to costly settlements.
Even though they are dealing with limited ability to generate more income in this age bracket they rarely stick together for financial reasons. Divorce at any age can be devastating financially but it is particularly hard on older adults who are past their “peak’ earning years. Also, their finances tend to be more complicated, they may have second homes, they could own businesses or stock needs to be divided. There are children and grandchildren to consider.
Women often bear the brunt of ‘starting over”. Women, more then men, often dropped out of the workforce in their prime earning years to take care of raising the children. Often by the period of the divorce they have been out of the workforce for several years or are too old to secure employment. Women over 50 experience a decline of 45% in their standard of living after divorce.
Older adults are healthier, more active and tend to live longer than the previous generation. This has caused many older adults to question staying in a marriage when they are still living active fruitful lives.
Often, grey divorces have their standard of living drops significantly as quite often they are splitting their resources
In the first couple of years after a “gray divorce,” as many of 50% end up living alone and this will continue to grow as baby boomers age, and this can strain already tight finances after divorce for both partners.
With a divorce most lawyers would encourage their client to seek their own financial planner separate from their ex to help them move forward financially. This is particularly true for women who may have always used their husband’s financial advisor. Women tend to be in a worse off situation as they were less likely to be involved in the family finances. Women after a divorce in this age category were more likely to be pushed below the poverty line.
However, on the positive side baby boomers have more wealth than any generation in history so a greater percentage can afford to live in separate households.
While we have been focusing on financial implications of divorce there are other issues that need to be dealt with. Issues like loneliness and social isolation, which can be a problem for both partners but is particularly harder on men.
On the positive side, there are more older single people than ever before, not for just re-partnering but for an increasingly wider social circle.
You can start over again. Maybe you will need to live on a tighter budget, but the freedom and the chance to go reinvent yourself and live the life you wanted can be worth more than any financial implications.