I propose that the more wages stagnate and the COL increases, the more people are going to stick to dating and marrying people in their own socioeconomic class.

I propose that the more wages stagnate and the COL increases, the more people are going to stick to dating and marrying people in their own socioeconomic class. I think there will be a threshold in which there is a clear choice to made between romance and lifestyle between two socioeconomic classes (barring the ultra rich). i.e., dating someone in a lower class than you incurs a higher cost that will have a significant impact on your financial plans (retirement, housing, edit: children, etc).