Will You…Split The Rent?

Rent, real estate and relationships are on daters’ minds, according to new data from OkCupid and Realtor.com

Over the past few years, nearly 4 million daters on OkCupid answered the in-app matching question “Are you currently saving to buy your own home?” with respondents who said “Yes” jumping from 41% in 2019 to 48% in 2022. And this summer, data revealed that singles who are saving to buy a home got 13% more Likes and 24% more Matches on OkCupid than those who aren’t.

A trend we’re seeing is that communication skills and a great sense of humor aren’t the only items on dater’s wish lists these days. They’re now prioritizing someone who’s investing in their future, specifically in real estate. In fact, Millennials are 32% more likely than Gen X to say owning a home is a bigger turn-on than being attractive, and Gen Zers are 27% more likely than Gen X to say the same. One-third (33%) of daters go so far to say it’s important that their match has a high credit score.

According to Realtor.com, rents are increasing by double-digit percentages in major cities, including Miami (26.2%), New York (25.4%), Boston (24.8%), Chicago (20.6%) and Orlando (20.4%). So it’s no wonder that over half of OkCupid daters in these cities are looking for a partner to move in with. A majority of respondents on OkCupid are open to moving in with someone they’re dating within 1–2 years, with 37% of people willing to move in with a partner between 6 months to 1 year; 34% of people wanting to wait 1–2 years; 17% saying less than 6 months; and 12% waiting 2+ years. And 87% of OkCupid respondents said they want to split the rent when they move in with a partner.

Daters can save thousands on rent by splitting a one-bedroom apartment with their partner. According to Realtor.com, here is how much people can save in each of the top 10 cities for rent growth in the United States right now:

And singles in these cities are still looking for meaningful, serious relationships. Almost two million daters across the country answered OkCupid’s in-app question “What’s more interesting to you right now?,” with response options “love” and “sex,” over the past two years, and the majority of daters in Miami (73%), New York (73%), Boston (72%), Chicago (72%), Orlando (72%), San Jose (73%), San Diego (69%), Charlotte (72%), Dallas (72%) and Nashville (70%) are more interested in love over sex right now.

So the positive side of rents rising? Looking for a lifelong partner ASAP is on the rise, too. You just may find the love of your life, and move in together, before the end of the year if you play your cards right. Skip the “holding a fish”selfie, and post a pic of you hanging out in your furnished apartment!

Download OkCupid to find a date (that you can move in with!) now.

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Will You…Split The Rent? was originally published in OkCupid Dating Blog on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

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