Tag Archives: living together

Dear Wendy: “Should I Move In With My Crush?”

Wendy AtterberryOctober 27, 2010 //

I’m moving to a new city soon. I have a female friend who lives there whom I’ve always had a crush on. I was looking forward to the chance to ask her out, see how she felt about me, and if there was anything between us. However, before I got a chance, she asked if she could move in with me as she was having trouble finding a new apartment. As the request was a bit time sensitive I said yes, not wanting to keep her from having a place to live while I sorted out my feelings. Now I’m not sure what to do. Should I just lay out my feelings and risk freaking her out (and making our soon-to-be living arrangements a bit awkward), should I keep it to myself and see how things work out, or does the sheer fact that she asked to move in with me mean I’m a permanent fixture in the friend zone. — Confused Renter

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Girl Talk: I’m Moving In With A Guy … Again

Laura KusnyerSeptember 30, 2010 //

This November, I’m moving in with my boyfriend, and it will be my third time living with a significant other. Needless to say, the first two times didn’t work out. At 22, my first love moved into my already furnished apartment; we split soon after. Later, at 25, my ex and I signed a lease for a one-bedroom in upper Manhattan. We had basically no furniture, so we embarked on an adventure to the Ikea in Paramus, New Jersey. That was the beginning of our demise. Keep reading »

Dear Wendy: “Am I Too Young To Live With My Boyfriend?”

Wendy AtterberryFebruary 11, 2010 //

I’m 20 years old and am a college sophomore in New York. I met my boyfriend, a fellow classmate, during orientation and we’ve been together for a year and four months and things are going really great. The time to pick housing for next year is coming up soon and I’m having trouble deciding things. I go to Columbia, where the administration had just implemented a “gender neutral” housing policy starting next year, as you guys wrote about in one of your previous posts, and I’m trying to decide if I want to live with my boyfriend next year. If we do decide to be roommates, we could get a really nice double with our own kitchen and bathroom, which would put an end to the communal kitchen/bathroom ordeal I’ve had to deal with for the last two years. It’ll be like having our own apartment in New York. But I know that being roommates can bring a lot of other things into the relationship that we never had to deal with before, and I don’t know if we’re ready for that. Also, I’m not sure if I will ever get any work done if I’m living with my boyfriend. But then again, I feel like it would be the perfect arrangement for us, and I’m not really concerned about us breaking up and having to deal with the awkwardness that would ensue. What do you think? — Undecided Roommate

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New York Couple Test Their Vows In A Tiny Microstudio

Wendy AtterberryDecember 11, 2009 //

How much space do you need if sharing it with a significant other? If I’m on vacation with my husband, one room in a hotel is fine, but if we’re talking full-time living space, I need at least a one-bedroom apartment with a door to a room I can hole up in and be alone if the mood strikes (or if my dude’s watching sports on TV). I cannot even begin to fathom sharing 175 square feet with my husband and two cats, but that’s exactly what one New York couple is doing. Zaarath and Christopher Prokop live in the smallest apartment in the city in the working-class Manhattan neighborhood of Morningside Heights. The couple bought the “microstudio” for $150,000 three months ago and share it with their two cats (see all the photos here). With no closets, the couple keeps their clothes strategically stashed at various dry cleaners and in their offices. They’ve got a single hot plate, a mini-fridge, two windows, and a queen-sized bed that takes up a third of their living space. They don’t have room for a trash can (“the second something needs to be thrown out, they walk to the chute in the hallway”), but they have a kitchen cabinet full of champagne (“Zaarath’s job allows them to order cases of it”). “We really have everything we need.” says Christopher. Keep reading »

Girl Talk: I Lived With A Hoarder

Judy McGuireDecember 3, 2009 //

Have you been watching “Hoarders” on A&E? If you’re unfamiliar, each episode documents the lives of two of the estimated three million Americans who are so compulsive about accumulating crap of all kinds that they’ve lost the ability to function normally.

Until I was assigned this story, I didn’t watch it. I like crappy reality shows as much as the next lady, but this one didn’t appeal to me—I’d already lived it. Keep reading »

Mind Of Man: Whatever You Do, Don’t Cohabitate

John DeVoreOctober 7, 2009 //

There are only two reasons why I’d move in and live with another girlfriend. We’re married and determined to fill a sweatshop with our nimble-fingered love critters. Or she cracks me in the head with a shovel, sews my mouth shut, replaces my eyeballs with marbles, and sits my stuffed body in the corner. Whatever you do, don’t move in with your boyfriend. What? It’s too late? Sweet Zeus, Odin, and Quetzalcoatl, winged serpent god of the Aztecs! I hope your cohabitation doesn’t end the way two (two!) of mine did – with helicopters launching off the roof amidst tornadoes of debris and smoke, a single individual hanging off the skids, flipping the bird to the person whose name is on the lease. Keep reading »

Advice For Jillian Harris Now That She’s Moving In Wth Ed Swiderski

Ami AngelowiczSeptember 14, 2009 //

I guess it’s time for me to give up the dream that Jillian Harris will realize marrying Ed Swiderski is a BIG mistake and run back into the arms of Reid Rosenthal. In light of a million warning signs, “Bachelorette” Jillian is blindly plodding forward with Ed. Yup. She’s moving into his condo this week. [Insert blood-curdling scream here.] In regards to taking this huge step in their relationship, Jillian says, “I can start [having] a real life again. I’m looking forward to some sort of normalcy –- making dinners, waking up early, cleaning house. It’s perfect.” [People]

Jillian … eek! There is a difference between “leap of faith” and “blind faith.” As those of us who have lived together know, living with Ed is not likely to be the “perfect” arrangement she’s expecting. Even all those cute pillows from Pottery Barn won’t change the fact that Ed is either gay or a two-timer. Sigh. We have to let her make her mistakes. But because I have a soft spot for her, I thought the least I could do is give some advice on how to survive the first week living together. Keep reading »

Girl Talk: Is It Bad To Live Together Before Marriage?

Ami AngelowiczJuly 27, 2009 //

It’s undeniable that marriage and relationships in general look nothing like they did 40 years ago. What’s happened? Women’s lib, skyrocketing divorce rates, the death of the nuclear family — and that’s just for starters. The whole game has changed. Sometimes I think that each generation exhibits a reactionary trend to their predecessors. I am part of the “divorced parents” era. Although my parents are still married, about 60 percent of all people I meet my age come from broken homes. While this phenomenon didn’t necessarily make us “anti-marriage,” it has certainly made us “marriage cautious” or “marriage disillusioned.” As a modern woman I know the statistics – if I ever do tie the knot, I know it ain’t gonna be all sunshine and roses. And that’s why I plan to be as sure as I can possibly, possibly be. Before I exchange any vows, I’ve made a vow to myself: I MUST live with someone before I marry him. I’m not alone in this thinking. About 70 percent of couples are cohabitating before marriage these days. Keep reading »

Debate This: Should You Live Together Before Marriage?

Lauren GitlinDecember 1, 2008 //

For many women, moving in with a serious boyfriend is not merely a stepping stone in the evolution of a relationship, it’s a practical way to both give the mundane realities of marriage a test-run and deal with the exorbitant expenses of modern living. When it comes to co-habiting with a significant other, we’ve come a long way since that old chestnut about not buying the cow when you could get the milk for free.

Or have we? Some research shows that living together before marriage actually increases the already stacked odds that the union will end in divorce. It might seem old-fashioned, but there are plenty of progressive, independent women opting to hold off on living with their dudes until after “I do.” Of course, there are no hard and fast rules for ensuring a marriage succeeds. I talked to two women with opposing views about whether co-habitating with a partner was good or bad for the long-term health of a relationship.
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Seven Realities Of Shacking Up

Leigh-Anne WadleySeptember 21, 2008 //

Our brother from another mother, the venerable dude site AskMen.com, has some words of wisdom for their readers on the perks and perils of shacking up with your one-and-only. We thought the advice was so universal, we thought we’d share it with the broads who read The Frisky. Enjoy!

Asking your girlfriend to move in with you seems like a good idea. It’s the fantasy of waking up to freshly brewed coffee, hot waffles and clean, matching socks that has you contemplating the big question: “To shack up or not to shack up?”

You might figure shacking up kills two birds with one stone:

1. It’s a brilliant way of proving you are serious about making a commitment without having to fork out a Donald Trump-sized fortune for a diamond ring.
2. You can literally save bundles sharing the rent, food and utilities. Plus you will have sex on tap and a personal chef.

Of course you know you’re going to have to be a bit more considerate and share your prized possessions, but are you really ready for the realities of shacking up with your girlfriend? We present you with the seven realities of shacking up with your girlfriend to help you make this decision, after the jump… Keep reading »