High-Income Couples Less Likely to Have Kids

Four out of every 10 couples who married less than five years have no kids, and the chances that they will remain childless are directly proportionate to their income, according to Statistics Korea on Thursday.

There are 1.32 million couples in Korea who have been married for less than five years, and 40.2 percent have no children.

There is a clear difference between married couples with and without children depending on whether both husband and wife work, whether they own their home, and how much money they make.

Only 54.3 percent of double-income couples have children, compared to 65.7 percent of single-income couples. And only 56 percent of couples who own their homes have children, compared to 64.8 percent who rent.

Some 48.6 percent of couples who make more than W100 million a year have no children, compared to 41.3 percent who earn between W50 million to W70 million and 36.5 percent who earn less than W10 million a year (US$1=W1,188).

But money is not the only determining factor. Fear of a professional woman's career coming to a screeching halt due to childbirth plays an important role.

Meanwhile, the proportion of newlyweds who moved straight into their own home has edged up to 43.8 percent, and among couples who have been married for five years or more, 53.2 percent own their home.

Some 58.4 percent of couples still registered their home in the husband's name, but 14.5 percent listed the names of both spouses, up 1.2 percentage points from last year.

Most took out loans to buy their home with 85.1 percent, leading to an increase in loans that totaled an average of W100 million, up a whopping 11.1 percent compared to last year.

The debts of home-owning young couples averaged W135 million, 1.8 times higher than the amount owed by couples who rent or lease. The average annual income of young couples is W55.04 million, up 4.3 percent.

Read this article in Korean