D.I.N.Ks seem to have always had more money that people with kids. The first time I heard the term D.I.N.Ks (Double Income No Kids), it was in reference to a gay couple. The conversation revolved around that two gay men were much better off than straight couples since they couldn't have children and would never have that added expense to their partnership. This was about 30 years ago and my, how the times have changed. But one thing that may have not have changed is the fact that we are still making the money.
Men in same-sex marriages tend to earn significantly more than their lesbian or heterosexual counterparts, according to new data released this week by the U.S. Treasury Department. Gay men had an average household income of $176,000 in 2014, $52,000 more than lesbian couples and $63,000 more than opposite-sex couples.
The Treasury Department’s first-ever look at tax returns for same-sex couples adds a new element to research on the ways gender and geography affect earnings. Same-sex couples, for example, tend to live on the coast and in major metropolitan areas, where average earnings tend to be higher than other parts of the country. For male couples, that geographic earnings premium helps explain why heterosexual couples earn 36% less. Lesbian couples, on the other hand, only top heterosexual couples’ average income by a narrower 9.7%—and when you compare lesbian couples to heterosexual couples in the same zip code, that advantage disappears. – time.com/money
The big joke when I first heard of D.I.N.Ks was that of course they should be called "dinks" since they are two of them. But I guess it's not really a joke since two penises does mean more money.
That’s in part because of the gender pay gap, according to an Upshot story in the New York Times, which affects only one half of a couple’s income in a heterosexual couple. Child care expenses also play a role. Same-sex female couples are four times more likely than same-sex male couples to have children.
One group where incomes are remarkably higher than peers: same-sex married men with children report average earnings of $275,000, more than double that of same-sex female and heterosexual couples. That’s probably because it’s a self-selecting group. In order to become parents, male couples have to be able to afford adoptions, which can top $30,000, Upshot reports. – time.com/money
I was expecting the fact that more gay D.I.N.Ks may be adopting to lessen the gap, but it looks like we are rolling in the dough while having kids, too.
h/t: time.com/money