Rental search site Rent.com has identified 10 metro areas it says are "wonderful places to create a fun and affordable lifestyle" for those just tying the knot. Six are in the South, including three in Texas; two are in the Midwest; and two are in the West. No metro in the Northeast made the list.
The site chose the metros based on availability of rental inventory, cost of living, annual average wages and unemployment rates. After choosing the top 25 markets by rental availability, the site compared the remaining three factors for the metro to national averages, giving unemployment double weight. The 10 resulting metros are not ranked in any particular order.
- Austin, Texas
- Raleigh-Durham, N.C.
- Dallas
- Kansas City, Mo.
- Houston
- Denver
- Minneapolis
- Phoenix
- Washington, D.C.
- Baltimore
In addition, market research firm RedShift Research conducted an online survey of 1,000 cohabiting couples in November 2010 on behalf of Rent.com. The vast majority of respondents were married, 92 percent, while 2 percent were engaged and 6 percent were neither.
According to the previously unreleased findings, 75 percent of all respondents reported that their quality of life had improved since moving in with their significant other, while the remaining 25 percent reported that they found cohabiting "stressful," the site said.
The principal stressors for this group included not having their own space (cited by 42 percent), sharing household expenses (33 percent), and divvying up household chores (25 percent).
A majority of all respondents, 62 percent, said their financial situation had improved as a result of moving in with their significant other.
When it came to combining household items, 62 percent of all respondents said they kept everything from both previous homes when moving in together. Nearly a fifth, 19 percent, said they got rid of almost everything previously owned and bought new items, according to Rent.com.
