We've got news, analysis, charts, maps and more. The census also shows that Maine is continuing to lose its new blood, as young adults move away and leave their aging parents and grandparents behind. The migration has pushed the state's median age up from 33.8 to 38.6, the highest in New England. Although some of the shift toward single-occupant households can be attributed to the aging of the population, it is also a reflection of changing lifestyles, experts say. More people, especially women, are forgoing marriage to live independently.
Divorce rates are high.
Baby boomers' children are leaving the nest, leaving single parents behind. In 1990, 27.1 percent of Maine households were occupied by a married couple with children. By 2000, that number had fallen to 21.8 percent. During the same time period, the proportion of people living alone rose from 23.3 percent to 27 percent. Baby boomers in their 50s who are sending their kids off into the world are partially responsible for the decline in the number of married households with children.