Deanna Medina and Ever Gutierrez of Los Angeles have been engaged for three years and have lived together for 12.
They also have three kids together, ages 17 months to 11 years.
While more of the USA’s cohabiters are childless (59% ”” almost 9 million ”” as of March, when Census counted current cohabiters), they’re not the only ones driving the rise in cohabitation. There are also 6.3 million who, like Medina and Gutierrez, have kids and make up the other 41%. About half of those have kids from a partner’s previous relationship, and half are children from the cohabiting relationship, researchers say.