Rising Cost of Starting a Family

Bangladesh has long regarded marriage and family formation as major social milestones.

However, rising inflation and the costs of housing, education, healthcare, and transportation, along with labor market uncertainty, are disrupting this pattern.

For many young people, marriage has become an economic calculation rather than a purely personal or cultural choice, leading to delayed marriages, smaller family aspirations, shifting gender expectations, and greater financial dependence on families.

The most immediate effect of rising living costs is delayed marriage. Establishing an independent household, especially in urban areas, requires a stable income that many young people lack.

Rent, utilities, food, transportation, and other essentials consume much of their earnings.

Consequently, many young men, expected to be primary providers, feel financially unprepared to support a spouse, maintain a household, or afford marriage-related expenses.

For young women, economic pressures are reshaping marriage decisions in multiple ways.

Higher education and employment have strengthened aspirations for financial independence and career development, while rising living costs have heightened the importance of economic security.

Marriage may therefore be delayed not only to establish careers but also because dependence on a financially insecure spouse appears risky.

Consequently, marriage increasingly requires careful consideration of income, employment stability, housing, and long-term compatibility.

Marriage costs further complicate young people’s decisions. Weddings often require substantial spending on ceremonies, clothing, jewelry, gifts, food, and hospitality, while families may feel pressured to maintain social status through expensive celebrations.

Even when couples prefer modest arrangements, family expectations and social comparison can drive up expenses.

Thus, despite marriage remaining socially valued, its economic and cultural costs can be a significant barrier to marriage.

Rising living costs are also reshaping decisions about parenthood and family size. Unlike earlier generations, many young couples carefully assess whether they can afford to raise children.

Rising expenses for education, healthcare, nutrition, childcare, and housing, along with pressure to invest in children’s future competitiveness, make parenthood financially demanding.

Consequently, economic insecurity may prompt couples to delay parenthood or opt for smaller families.

This trend has significant social implications. Smaller families may reflect deliberate planning and greater investment in each child, but they can also stem from economic constraints.

When young people delay marriage and parenthood because they cannot afford them, family decisions become indicators of broader economic stress.

The issue therefore extends beyond shifting values to the economy’s ability to provide secure livelihoods and pathways to independent adulthood.

Rising living costs also extend young adults’ financial dependence on parents. Expensive independent living encourages many to remain in their parents’ households, which provides security during unemployment or early careers.

However, prolonged dependence can delay personal autonomy and strain intergenerational relationships. While young people may gain educational and employment opportunities, their financial independence remains limited.

Parents, meanwhile, face ongoing support responsibilities alongside retirement planning and other family obligations.

Economic pressures are reshaping gender roles within marriage. The traditional male-breadwinner model is increasingly difficult to sustain as single incomes no longer cover household expenses, making dual-income families necessary for many urban households.

This shift may enhance recognition of women’s economic contributions and bargaining power.

However, women often continue to shoulder domestic and caregiving responsibilities alongside paid work.

Without equitable redistribution of household duties, economic participation may create a “double burden” rather than genuine equality.

The consequences extend beyond individual households. Delayed marriage and parenthood, smaller families, and prolonged dependence may gradually reshape Bangladesh’s social structure, affecting housing, consumption, childcare, eldercare, and migration.

Economic inequality can further widen disparities, as wealthier families can afford housing, weddings, and childrearing, while lower- and middle-income households may postpone these decisions.

Rising living costs may therefore deepen class-based inequalities in family formation and stability.

Addressing this challenge requires more than encouraging young people to marry or have children earlier.

The underlying issue is economic insecurity. Employment opportunities must offer wages that better match living costs, while policies on affordable housing, public transportation, healthcare, and childcare can reduce the financial burden on young households.

Universities and policymakers must also focus on improving the transition from education to stable employment.

At the social level, greater acceptance of modest weddings and less pressure to spend on status-driven displays could help reduce unnecessary financial barriers.

Ultimately, rising living costs are changing the meaning and timing of marriage and family formation among youth.

Young people are not necessarily rejecting marriage or family; rather, they are recalculating these commitments under conditions of economic uncertainty.

Their decisions reflect a broader transformation in which personal aspirations increasingly collide with financial realities.

Unless more affordable and secure pathways to independent adulthood are created, marriage and family formation may become less a matter of personal choice and more a privilege determined by economic capacity.

The future of youth marriage, therefore, will depend not only on shifting social values but also on whether the country’s economic policies enable its young generation to build stable and dignified lives.

(The author: Former Additional Secretary to the Government; Currently Associate Professor of Public Policy, Bangladesh Institute of Governance and Management–Affiliated to the University of Dhaka)