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Comment by thr328982 | Hacker News Reader

I think most men have opposite experience. Only a celebrity can choose from hundreds of potential mates.

It is almost impossible to find a good partner for starting a family (healthy, bellow 26, no debt, family values).

Below 26 is your killer. Statistically, people marry later than before, and women are more educated (both 'than before' and 'than men'). Women have more career opportunities than before, so why would they want to marry at 26 (or sub-26, as you put it). That kills their opportunities for careers and post-collegiate education. Family values? That's one specific to your region of the country (I'm in a less pious part of the U.S., thankfully). No debt? That's a hard one given how much more 'the critical things' (health care, education, housing, not talking about computers) cost to millenials.

What you described are pre-1980 criteria in a post-2010 world.

Not really true. There are many women out there who marry below 26, even with career opportunities. Debt tends to be low, though not zero. And family values are high. However, they do tend to be from a set of ethnicities that are not extreme Western or American.

The women you may be referring to are unbounded, liberal, and non-restrictive. The set of men they tend to attract are less serious, less guided, are more short-termed. Marriage for them before 30 is a situation of rarity.

> Statistically, people marry later than before.

True when you include certain cultural demographics.

FWIW the groups of people that marry before 26 may not be attractive to the average HN reader as they tend to be moderately to very religious (at least that's my experience) or "conservative" e.g. a good amount of my suburban/semi-rural Texan high school acquaintances already got married (I'm 22) yet no one I know from my NYC college class is anywhere close to that.

My stats are 'overall average' and 'United States'. My point was more that 'sub-26, family values, no debt' is bucking a serious demographic trend. I don't expect that trend to taper any time soon, either, as economic pressures are connected to it.

People have wacky expectations and want to wait to have more money, more experience, more whatever.

Most of my primary circle of friends married between 23-26, which was awesome for us because we met people we knew better.

People who marry later struggle more, both with finding the right person who wants to be married, but still isn't and other issues. Whatever gains you make in working go away quickly with a few IVF cycles.

I mean, it's great if you had that kind of network of friends at 23-26 and you found the right person, but what if you didn't? I doubt people are purposefully rejecting perfectly good mates because they're arbitrarily waiting longer. Meeting new people is just not that easy for many of us.

> I'm in a less pious part of the U.S., thankfully

Tongue-in-cheek, or hilariously self-unaware? You decide!

There is no mention about kids or who would be making the sacrifice if a kid pops out.

Biology is still the same even in post 2010 world.

How old are you that you're setting a ceiling of 26?

> healthy, bellow 26, no debt, family values

That is me. But I also have pretty much no money to fund the "family values" :P

Italy is a bit too far :(

How is above 26 not a good partner

Enjoy your statistical divorce, at least you can tell your family you tried

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