Married Couples in the DC Area Are Taking on Roommates

• February 11, 2019

by Nena Perry-Brown

Rising housing costs are compelling married couples to take on a roommate in order to save money. A recent Trulia study illustrates this rise across the country — which is even more apparent in the DC area.

The DC region has the tenth-highest share of married couples with roommates in the country, and is the lone top ten entrant not in the western United States. From 2012 to 2016, the average share of married couples with roommates in the DC area was 1.39 percent, a 66 percent increase over the share observed from 2005 to 2009.

Nationwide, just under half a percent of married couples lived with a roommate or had a tenant last year — more than double the share when compared to 1995. Married renters are more likely to have roommates than are married homeowners.

Having roommates is more common in expensive housing markets, particularly on the West Coast. The Honolulu and Orange County metro areas have the highest shares of married couples with roommates, both with shares at least four times the national average.

This article originally published at http://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/high-dc-area-housing-costs-mean-more-married-couples-with-roommates/14992