Cohabitating with a roommate has its challenges—maybe she polishes off your pad Thai leftovers or dips into your night cream and denies it—but it’s something almost everyone has to deal with.
But once you’re living with a guy or married, you can kiss those days goodbye—at least until you pop out a kid. Right? Eh, not necessarily.
These days, more couples are living with a third party, whether that means they’re shacking up with a parent (32 percent of 18- to 34-year-olds are living with their ‘rents, according to the Pew Research Center) or a roommate. And with rental fees skyrocketing (they’re projected to rise by 3.5 percent this year, according to a study by realtytrac.com), it’s no wonder couples are experimenting with nontraditional living situations.
But are the money-saving benefits worth giving up your twosome groove? “While opening up your home can sound great in theory, it can create problems in reality,” says Denver-based marriage therapist Wyatt Fisher, Ph.D. “One of the main issues is that it decreases the amount of quality time you spend with your significant other,” says Fisher. “So make sure you do whatever it takes to stay connected.”
