Arielle Kuperberg, a sociologist at the University of North Carolina, finds that there is no difference in divorce rates between cohabiters and those who moved in after marriage, Fox News reports.

While cohabitation is wildly popular, research dating back to the 1970s has suggested that non-legal relationships aren't as solidas those that come complete with wedding rings.

Kuperberg used data from the National Survey of Family Growth, a nationally representative survey carried out by the U.S. government. Using data from the 1995, 2002 and 2006 versions of the survey, she gathered information on more than 7,000 people who had been married at least once, including when they moved in together and when and if they divorced.

Using this method, she found no link between whether people had cohabited before marriage and their rate of divorce. The turning point in age for picking a life partner seems to be about 23, Kuperberg said.

Other research included in the report finds that moving in may be fine, but rushing things might have disadvantages. Sharon Sassler, a sociologist at Cornell University, interviewed more than 150 cohabiters for a book she's working on about cohabitation in the United States.

Sassler has found that most cohabiters with college degrees move in together only after a long stretch of dating. More than half have been couples for more than a year, with an average of 14 months dating before cohabiting. More than half of the cohabiters without college degrees move in together after less than six months of dating.