Radio Rothbard Modern Marriage and the Homeownership Rate
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Dec 12, 2025 Jeffrey Degner, an economics professor and author of "Inflation and the Family," explores the intriguing link between marriage rates and homeownership. He discusses how government intervention has complicated home buying, particularly for younger generations. Jeffrey reveals that marriage often precedes homeownership due to combined finances, but rising ages and economic pressures create a growing gap. He cautions against viewing property as mere investment and emphasizes the importance of long-term financial practices, especially for Gen Z.
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Marriage Timing Drives Homebuying
- Marriage timing strongly affects when people buy homes because combining households raises saving capacity.
- Delayed marriage shifts the age of first-time homeownership later, expanding the marriage-home gap.
Fertility Decline Predates Recent Decades
- Long-term fertility decline began before recent decades and tracks falling child mortality and broader social changes.
- The 1950s baby boom was an anomaly atop a longer downward trend, so recent declines are not solely modern phenomena.
Inflation Culture Shaped Family Choices
- Degner links the normalization of contraception and dual-income households to an 'inflation culture'.
- Rising prices pushed more women into the workforce and devalued children in family planning.
