Millennial Couples Start New Trend: Buying Homes Before Marriage

In the past, marriage and homewnership have gone hand in hand, but it’s starting to change. The millennial generation is in no rush to marry, yet they are interested in buying homes together. CNBC’s Annie Nova reports unmarried couples accounted for 16% of first-time home buyers in 2017, the highest share on record. Plus, today, only 57% of first-time home buyers are married, compared with 75% in 1985.

"It's absolutely a trend," said Jessica Lautz, the Realtors' managing director of survey research. "People feel fine purchasing a home without a ring."

Still, real estate lawyer Aaron Shmulewitz said that non-married couples purchasing a home together "should be aware of the pitfalls."

Most married couples simply take the title, "tenants by the entirety." That wonky term means both spouses own 100 percent of the house. It's harder for potential creditors to go after the property if one of the spouses is in serious debt (at least while the other spouse is alive) because it doesn't belong to just that person.