Divorce Rate
A divorce comes with a lot of unexpected twists and turns, which makes it a life-changing event. Texas law for divorce is subject to change as tax reforms and legislation unfold throughout the years. To gain an insight into the trends and divorce rates in Texas, here is some data to help explain how it is changing.
Divorce Rates and Texas Marriages
The marriage rate in Texas for the year 2017 was 7.1 per 1,000 total population in the state. This number is 0.2 higher than the national marriage rate.
The divorce rate in the state of Texas for the same year 2017 was 2.2. This rate includes the annulments that were granted and are calculated per 1,000 total population of Texas.
The divorce rate in the state of Texas has been trending downward for the last 11 years. In the 1990’s, the rate was more than double what is was in 2017.
These are the numbers representing that decline:
- 1990- 5.5
1995- 5.2 - 1999- 3.8
- 2000- 3.8
- 2001- 4
- 2002- 3.9
- 2003- 3.8
- 2004- 3.6
- 2005- 3.3
- 2006- 3.4
- 2007- 3.3
- 2008- 3.3
- 2009- 3.3
- 2010- 3.3
- 2011- 3.2
- 2012- 3
- 2013- 2.9
- 2014- 2.7
- 2015- 2.6
- 2016- 2.6
- 2017- 2.2
- 2018- 2.6
- 2019- 2.1
What has Changed the Rate of Divorce in Texas?
There are a lot of factors that have influenced the decline of the divorce rates in Texas. One being the decline in the marriage rates. The downward trend in marriage rates in Texas since 1981 can be related to the change in the ages of the population.
When the population has a high percentage of people in their early twenties which is considered the primary marrying years then the rate of marriages can be expected to be higher. If the majority of people in this age range declined to marry, so do the marriage rates and following behind that the divorce rates.
Divorce Rates rose from 1970 to 1981, and after 1981 they fell consistently through 1989, once again rose until 1992, and since then have been declining. For men, the majority of divorces occurred in ages between 30 and 44. For women, the majority of divorces occurred in ages between 30 and 44.
Marriage/ Divorce Ratio
Some question when the number of divorces was half the number of marriages did that mean half of marriages will end in divorce. The expert answer is no. The divorce/marriage ratio for any particular year does not indicate what will transpire during the life of the members of that year’s marriage count. There is no predictable data available to predict the future ratios between marriages and divorces.
Children Affected by Divorce
In the year 2013, there were more than 59,000 children under the age of 18 affected by divorce. In Texas, the average was 0.7 children per divorce. This number can be misleading and leaves the impression almost all divorces involve children. The true statistic in this year showed only a little more than half of the divorces for which the number of children was known, had no children. The data actually reflected less than a quarter of the divorces affected only one child. The other divorces involved two children or more.