Not Ready to Nest – Young couples starting to build their lives together

Demographics and origin:

• Mid-20s to mid-30s

• Couples, straight and gay

• Mostly moving out of individual apartments in South End, Uptown or other areas of Charlotte

Career:

• Moving up in health care, creative agencies, finance, tech and other professions

• Couples may have split commute, such as South End or Uptown and SouthPark or Ballantyne

• One partner may be in a service sector (management)

Distinctive characteristics:

• Merging households and choosing “together” items, which may mean buying new furnishings

• Interested in meeting other young couples — building their social network as a couple

• Eager to start hosting people in their home — dinner parties, etc.

• Not planning to have kids soon, if at all

• As a couple, they are less interested in nightlife focused on dating and hooking up

• Starting to travel to scenic and cultural destinations across the country and around the world