Marriage rates higher, divorce lower Parramatta: report

A new report shows Parramatta couples are more likely to stay married when they say ‘I do’ and less likely to split compared with their Aussie counterparts. Find out why.

Katherine Saab says traditional roles work well in her marriage. Picture: Instagram

Here’s some promising news for newlyweds: Parramatta couples are less likely to end up in divorce courts.

Law firm Australian Family Lawyers data shows Parramatta residents have a high number of married couples but fewer divorcees compared with the rest of Australia.

A report entitled “Australian relationships: Love, marriage, and Divorce in a Modern Nation” shows 51.8 per cent of the Parramatta population (496,672) is married – a higher proportion than the national average of 46.6 per cent.

Of the remaining locals in the Parramatta local government area aged over 15, 33.9 per cent never married, and 7.2 are divorced.

This is compared with 36.4 per cent who never married, and 7.8 per cent who divorced in greater Sydney.

Katherine Saab, with her daughter Charlotte, says marriage is for life. Picture: Instagram

Oatlands’ Katherine Saab, who has been married to her husband Joe for 16 years, said high marriage numbers and low divorce rates could be pointed to culture and ethnicity.

“There’s a higher demographic of ethnics in the area and culturally there’s such a stigma against separation and divorce,’’ the Lebanese-Australian wife and mother said.
“There’s a high focus on family and relationships.

“We don’t let the small things tear apart a marriage. We work through them.’’

Mrs Saab, who is a Maronite Catholic, said religion also played a part.

“In the Church, we’re taught marriage is forever and husbands and wives will go through things, and you persist and persevere,’’ the 42-year-old said.

She said she knew many nuclear families in the area but hardly any divorced couples.

The mother to Charlotte, 13 and Fred, 11, said her marriage took on traditional roles.

“I’m a housekeeper and I love that title, and I own it,’’ she said.

“I don’t mind cleaning up the home. I’m very house proud.’’

She also said not living together before marriage was good for relationships.

Demographer Mark McCrindle said age, the high number of people born overseas and religion were key factors in Parramatta’s higher-than-average marriage rate.

Mark McCrindle says three factors keep marriage rates high in Parramatta. Picture: Jordan Shields

“Areas that have a younger age are going to have more married couples,’’ he said.

Australian Bureau Statistics 2021 data shows the average age of a Parramatta resident is 35, with that corresponding to the marriage “life stage”

In Australia, the average age for a man to get married is 29.6 and 27.3 for women.

Parramatta’s diverse population – where 42 per cent of the community is born overseas – is also driving up marriage. That translates to 1.8 per cent of people in Parramatta being more likely to be born overseas.

In Australia, 38 per cent of the population says they don’t have a religion, compared with 30 per cent in Parramatta.

“It’s pretty diverse, pretty conservative in terms of those social traditions and marriage lines up with that,’’ Mr McCrindle said.

Religion is a key factor influencing marriages in Parramatta.

The Australian Family Lawyers report, “the most comprehensive review into legal relationships in Australia’’ shows de facto relationships are increasing in Australia.

In Parramatta, 21,511 people in de facto relationships in Parramatta in 2021 – a 30.4 per cent increase since 2016.

The report shows 56,244 divorces were granted in Australia in 2021 – a 13.6 per cent increase to 2020.

Figures show marriage lasts for an average of 12.2 years before divorce and almost half of the divorces granted in 2021 (47.8 per cent) were for couples with children under 18.

Queensland was the divorce capital of Australia in 2021 when there were 2.6 divorces per 1000 Queenslanders, above the national rate of 2.2 per 1000 people.

People seeking a sea-change in Queensland drove up the divorce rate.

“With that change of location and change of lifestyle is obviously people changing their circumstances, which precipitates the move and the relocation,’’ Mr McCrindle said.