Same-sex couples: Smarter, richer and growing

The number of same-sex couples in Australia has risen dramatically over the past 7 years.

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The Australian Bureau of Statistics has released detailed analysis of the 2011 Census which breaks down the relationships.
 
There were 33,700 same-sex couples in Australia in 2011, a 32 per cent increase since the 2006 Census, representing 1 per cent of all couples in the country.
 
17,600 were in male same-sex couples, 16,100 in female.
 
Interestingly, the age difference of those people in same-sex relationships was greater than that in opposite-sex relationships.
 
The age gap for female same-sex couples was an average of 4.8 years, while for males that difference was 6.5 years. The gap average for opposite-sex relationships was 3.7 years.
 
Furthermore, in around a quarter of male same-sex relationships, there was an age difference of 10 years or more.
 
More same-sex couples are also having children, with 6,300 kids living with same-sex couple families, up from 3,400.
 
The ABS says people in same-sex relationships tend to be more highly educated, have higher labour force participation rates, and have higher personal incomes than opposite-sex couples.
 
Around 67 per cent of male same-sex couples, and 58 per cent of female same-sex couples had a combined household income of $2000 or more per week, compared with 42% of opposite-sex couples.


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By Ricardo Goncalves
Source: SBS

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