Mediate Michigan

Unhappy couples today cannot afford to split up.

Consider a typical couple I’ll call Joan and Gary. The kids were stressed out by the high level of tension in the home. Both were anxious for Joan to move out, but their two incomes did not provide enough cash to pay for the rent for a separate apartment. The monthly minimum payments on their $30,000 of credit card debt compounded the problem. Their house was under water, so selling the house wasn’t a viable option for obtaining cash. So they postponed separation, and Joan moved into the basement of their home to minimize their contact. Their plan is to put the house up for sale when the market improves. As their mediator, I wondered about how long this plan could work, and what they would do if the market didn’t improve in the coming year.

Before the recession, divorce was easier, especially for home owning, dually employed couples. In most cases their home’s value had appreciated, so the house could be sold and the equity used to pay off credit card debt many had. And there was often still enough left to provide a down payment for each to buy a smaller place.

via Roslyn Zinner: Divorce Wannabees in the Age of Recession: How Trapped Couples are Coping.