Census: Jump in interracial married couples, single households

The number of interracial or interethnic married couple households rose 28 percent from 2000 to 2010, according to a U.S. Census Bureau study released today.

The study said that seven percent of U.S. married householders in 2000 identified themselves as interracial or interethnic. In 2010, that number was 10 percent.

The rise marks a 28 percent increase, according to the Census Bureau.

The states with the highest percentages of couples of a different race or Hispanic origin in 2010 lived primarily in the west and southwest.Locally, nearly 10 percent of households in New Jersey were headed by married couples of different races or origins. In Pennsylvania, the number was closer to five percent.

The Census also reports that growth in "non-family" households, which are typically headed by singles, rose at double the rate of households headed by families. The number of non-family households increased 16 percent, from 34 million in 2000 to 39 million in 2010, with Atlanta leading the list.

Meanwhile, the number of traditionally family households increased 8 percent, from 72 million in 2000 to 78 million in 2010, and is still the way most households are formed, though the gap is shrinking, especially the traditional husband-wife model.

Overall, 66 percent of all households in 2010 were family households, which is defined as when two or more more people related by birth, marriage or adoption live together.Forty-eight percent of all households in 2010 were husband-wife households.

Additionally, the Census noted there was a 41 percent increase in unmarried partner households between 2000 and 2010.