The holidays can be great, especially if you have a new beau to cozy up to, but once the season comes to an end it may have you thinking one of two things:
“The holidays have been great this year! My new partner and I have spent so much time together, and the best part about it is that we’ve saved so much money giving gifts as a pair!”
“Yikes! Both mine and my partners’ bank accounts are absolutely drained after this holiday season. We need to find a way to save some serious cash come January.”
If either of these scenarios sounds like you, beware! You may be dangerously close to committing the next latest dating trend on our list: Cohabidating
Cohabidating (/ko-ha-ba-date-ing/)
Shacking up with your new partner in a hurry to relieve financial stress, even though you may not be quite ready yet
Whether it’s the good vibes of the festive season playing tricks on you or the post-holiday realization that your wallets’ looking awfully thin, December is a prime window to fall victim to the idea that Cohabidating will make your woes melt away.
To give you an idea of how common Cohabidating is becoming, Plenty of Fish surveyed over 1000 single POF users and found that 49 percent of singles know someone who has done this, and almost 1 in 5 (18%) of singles have Cohabidated.
Moving in with your partner is a big deal, so why the sudden epidemic of this new trend? Easy, because everyone loves saving money.
Cohabidating seems to be particularly common among Millenials, and rightly so as it’s the demographic most directly affected by the growing housing crisis. Living on your own is expensive, and the idea that you could pay half as much money for the same amount of space and play house with your hubby could seem like a no-brainer, but here’s why you should step on the breaks before thinking about Cohabidating.
Moving in with your SO before you’re both ready is a recipe for disaster (and a fast approaching break-up)
Even if things are going great with your new partner, living in the same space as someone else is a whole different ball game. Living with you SO puts your relationship into hyperdrive, not to mention it also adds a whole slew of new topics to argue about. If the two of you aren’t ready to live a life that’s connected in every way, things could end badly and you might end up back at square one
Saving money is great, but being happy is better
Sure, allowing yourself to be a bit more financially stable is wonderful, but if it pushes you to take a big step in your relationship for the wrong reasons and ultimately causes you more stress than you started with, is it really worth it? We say a big, capital NO.
If we look back at our survey results, they show 1 in 5 singles have Cohabidated, past-tense not present, so be sure you’re not ending your relationship before it even begins!
I’ll leave you with this folks:
Cohabitate when you’re eager, don’t Cohabidate when funds are meager
