The cost of living crisis
Jake said his wife doesn’t have a college degree and that she would struggle to find work or a place to live if they separated. “The way the market is right now, even renting a home would be super hard for her,” he explained.
For context, Jake resides in Ontario, where the housing market is exceptionally unaffordable right now. The vacancy rate for rental units across the province was just 1.8% as of October 2022, according to data from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.
In Toronto, Ontario’s largest city, a one-bedroom condo costs upwards of $2,372 Canadian dollars (or $1,752 USD) a month to rent, according to Rentals.ca.
Meanwhile, the average selling price for a condo in the Toronto area was $716,145 (or $533,000 USD), in the third quarter of 2023, according to TRREB.
A similar trend is playing out in the U.S., as mortgage rates rise and house prices remain far beyond the reach of the average American. Even celebrities like Kevin Costner claim they are struggling to get their partners to leave after divorce.
It would appear that post-divorce cohabitation is another trend Ramsey has arguably missed, along with rising daycare costs and the lack of affordable housing.
Nevertheless, he offered Jake advice on how to navigate this tricky situation.
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Ramsey recommended Jake and his wife continue to see a marriage counselor to help them deal with their issues. An attempt to make the marriage work could be best for them. “If you guys staying in the same house involves healing your marriage, I’m all for it,” Ramsey told Jake.
However, if that fails, he strongly recommended they sell the house and move into individual apartments.
Jake’s son, Ramsey said, “does not need to be raised by divorced parents living in the same house together. That’s so freaking weird and psychologically damaging to your son. No!”
Researchers have looked into the impacts of marital conflict on children’s development. A study from the University of Massachusetts found “destructive conflict resolution styles,” such as hostility and marital withdrawal, negatively affect children’s emotional well-being, leading to anger, worry and sadness.
Another study from the Arabian Gulf University found that children who grow up in high-conflict families might have issues with self-esteem, trust, managing emotions and maintaining relationships.
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