Divorce: Pros and Cons of Sharing the Family Home
Nesting, or sharing the family home during or after the divorce, may offer short-term stability for your children and financial relief for you and your spouse. This living arrangement requires cooperation and is often temporary, but it can work under the right circumstances.
What Is Nesting?
Nesting is an arrangement during divorce where your children stay in the family home while you and your spouse take turns living there. Instead of shuttling your children back and forth between two homes, you and your co-parent rotate in and out of the home. This approach can provide consistency and comfort for your kids, especially if they have special needs or struggle with transitions.
When Nesting Might Make Sense
You might consider nesting if:
- You are trying to avoid selling the home in a poor real estate market
- You want to avoid uprooting your children right away
- You and your spouse can maintain respectful communication
- You need time to transition into separate living arrangements
Sometimes, nesting is the only financially viable option versus maintaining two full households. Each parent can rent a small, inexpensive apartment or temporarily stay with family when not in the main home.
What to Consider Before Trying Nesting
Nesting only works if you and your spouse can cooperate. You will need clear boundaries and perhaps private, locked storage areas in the shared home. Personal space matters, especially during such a sensitive time.
This arrangement is usually temporary. It can give you time to make thoughtful decisions about selling the house, finding new housing, or adjusting to a new routine. Nesting often ends when one of you meets a new partner, gets a job offer, or the housing market becomes more favorable.
Is Nesting Right for You?
Nesting is not for everyone, but it can provide stability and save money in the short term. It requires flexibility, communication, and patience, but it can help you and your family move through divorce with less disruption.
Contact the Law Offices of Robert J. Merlin
At the Law Offices of Robert J. Merlin, we focus on helping families move through divorce with dignity and cooperation. If you’re exploring nesting as a possibility, contact Robert J. Merlin at (305) 448-1555 to schedule a consultation.
The Law Offices of Robert J. Merlin, P.A. are located at 250 Catalonia Avenue, Suite 706, Coral Gables, FL 33134.
Bob Merlin is a Florida Bar Board Certified Family Law Specialist, he practices in the areas of divorce, time-sharing of children and parenting plans, child support, alimony, paternity, pre-nuptial and post-nuptial agreements, and cohabitation/partnership agreements.
As an experienced Collaborative attorney, Bob continually hones his skills in the Collaborative Process and trains other professionals how to become a Collaborative professional as he is.
“My goal is to help divorcing and other family law clients make well-informed decisions so they experience a more efficient process and feel more in control over their futures.”
