New Studies Find Young Singles Incurring Dating Debt
Contributed by: kellyseal on Monday, September 18 2023 @ 11:32 am
Last modified on Monday, September 18 2023 @ 11:53 am
Millennials and Gen Z singles are spending more money on dating, with some going into “dating debt,” where they are spending money on grooming, dinners out, gifts, and other related romantic expenses.
According to a new study by Lending Tree, 22 percent of millennials and 19 percent of Gen Z singles have begun to incur “dating debt.”
And another study by Credit Karma[*1] found that among daters aged 18-34, 29 percent said they’ve gone into debt for dating, including 21 percent who’ve said that debt exceeded $500 in one year. Twenty-nine percent admitted they had overspent in an attempt to impress their dates, while 19 percent said they did it to “seek intimacy.”
Credit Karma also found that 67 percent of respondents accumulated more than $100 in dating debt in the past year, and 41 percent admitted to having almost $250 in dating debt in the same period.
Even with the impact of inflation, singles are looking to impress and attract people in a competitive dating market, so many have overspent to project a certain lifestyle, or to attract more dates.
According to Phys.org[*2] , young daters are influenced by Instagram, TikTok, and other social media in terms of lifestyle and luxury purchases. Retailers are also using social media to employ marketing tactics aimed at young daters to compel them to impress their romantic interests with high-end purchases, such as “limited edition” products leading up to Valentine’s Day.
Money has always been a tricky subject in relationships. When it comes to spending money, one dater may opt for the more expensive restaurant or bottle of wine on a date, hoping that it will impress. But what psychologists have discovered, according to Phys.org, is that the recipient of expensive bottles of wine, for example, doesn’t necessarily link the cost to their level of appreciation. In other words, a cheaper bottle might have achieved the same reaction.
But talking about money is still in many ways taboo, especially when dating. Credit Karma also found that while 95 percent of respondents say that talking about finances with their romantic partners is important, 73 percent also said they would not talk finances on a first date. In fact, 69 percent said they told their partners “I love you” before they even discussed finances.
On the other hand, daters also say that inflation is having an impact on their dating lives. When Lending Tree surveyed 1,578 consumers about their dating habits, nearly one in five said they were going on fewer dates because of inflation. And Gen Z daters feel strongly about not incurring debt during this time, since they are making less money compared to the cost of living than previous generations.
In fact, Credit Karma found that 20 percent of respondents said that “having too much debt” was a dealbreaker.