Page 4 - FWP Wealth Adviser newsletter - Issue 117: August 2025

ISSUE 117
AUGUST 2025

WHEN PROPERTY depositphotos.com

HOLDS YOU TOGETHER

THE GROWING INFLUENCE OF HOUSING

COSTS ON MARITAL BREAKDOWNS

BY WEALTH ADVISER “With property prices as high as they are, separating can
feel impossible, especially for those with young children
Introduction: The New Bind—Australian who want stability and proximity to good schools.” (The
Marriages and Housing Market Realities Conversation, 13 July 2025)
For generations, home ownership has been woven into This article explores how Australia’s property boom is re-
the fabric of Australian life, emblematic of security and shaping marital decisions, the financial realities that ‘lock in’
prosperity. Yet, as property values in major cities and region- couples, the challenges of re-establishing life post-divorce,
al centres have skyrocketed, homes have become not just and the interplay between financial, social, and legal factors
havens but anchors—binding couples to relationships they affecting the modern Australian family.
might otherwise exit. The intersection of soaring housing
costs and changing societal values has led to a subtle but sig- Relationship ‘Lock-In’: Financial Impediments
nificant shift: for an increasing number of Australians, the to Separation
question is no longer just whether to separate, but whether The family home, once a cornerstone of aspiration, has
they can afford to. become a linchpin keeping many marriages intact. Recent
Recent research reported by The Conversation highlights academic studies analysed by University of Sydney News
the gravity of this phenomenon: and The Conversation reveal that as property prices surge,

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