According to the 2000 Census, 11 million people are living with an unmarried partner in the United States, including same-sex and opposite-sex couples. Many students at the University are following the trend as an increasing number of couples move in together.
“I really don’t have too many other people I know well enough to live with,” Kourtney Paranteau, 20, said.
After dating her partner,
20-year-old Jordan Meister, for two years, Paranteau took the next step. In September, the journalism majors decided to move in together.
Paranteau had lived in the residence halls, and when her roommate moved out, Meister became a fairly permanent fixture. After practically living together in the residence halls, getting an apartment together wasn’t as scary as Paranteau thought it would be.
“I think we anticipated a lot more pitfalls than we’ve actually encountered,” she said.
Just like any living situation, couples who room together have compromises to make. Above all, they have to learn how to balance a live-in partner while maintaining their own interests.
“I’m obsessed with TV, and he loves his Xbox,” said Lindsay Munroe, 22, about her live-in partner of four months, Chris Morin.
However, other couples said major compromises are rare.
“We make a lot of little ones,” said Spanish
major Adriyn Hayes, who
has been living with her partner, Dana Sniezko, for
13 months. “We try to do what’s most practical.”
While living with a partner requires lots of negotiation, there are also benefits, including saving money on everything from food to bills.
“My bills were literally cut in half,” Munroe said.
Couples living together might favor splitting bills in a more informal way.
“For dates we almost always go Dutch, or one of us will get it and the other will the next time,” Hayes said.
While sharing living
expenses is nice, other benefits of living together are
more personal.
“The bed is always warm, and there is always someone to take care of you when you’re sick,” Hayes said.
“I like it that when I cook it’s for more than just me,” Paranteau said.
Once graduation comes, couples must decide how to handle the next step.
“Wherever I can get a job is where I’ll go,” Munroe said. “Hopefully, we’ll be able to keep living together.”