A house can be 'grounds' for a split
- Laura Moore: Housebroken
- October 31, 2023
- 401
Years ago we lived next door to a house whose occupants were getting a divorce. It was so sad.
The place was brand new, and the neighbors had just moved in. The house was thrilled to have its first occupants and was devastated when the troubles began. Within a week the husband walked out the front door and didn’t even say good-bye. It is always hard not to take sides, but it was difficult. That lovely house had promised the couple to be a great, comfortable place to live, plus being a terrific tax deduction.
Houses find feuding couples to be very stressful. Occasional disagreements are to be
expected, but real conflicts make a house nervous. Angry couples have been known to yell, slam doors and even throw things at the walls. Too often discord leads one combatant to rush out the door in search of a divorce attorney. If its owners cannot be reconciled, their house must brave the specter of “property settlement” rearing its legal head.
The terrible truth is that building a house can be a marriage killer. The matrimony-murdering dangers inherent in building can be avoided if both partners follow faithfully the following commandments:
—First, decide and agree upon the size and layout of the house you want.
—Second, agree upon how much you can afford.
—Third, learn the joys of compromise.
—Fourth, never, ever go shopping with your spouse for wallpaper.
—Fifth, develop vast quantities of patience.
—Sixth, set aside 30 minutes a day not to talk about the house.
—Seventh, never, ever go shopping with your spouse for carpet.
—Eighth, be aware houses under construction tend to experience “overruns.” Protect your budget.
—Ninth, never, ever go shopping with your spouse for paint.
—Tenth, save your builder’s sanity by avoiding daily plan changes.
By following these commandments, couples should emerge on the closing side of house building still coupled. But by no means let down your guard. Living with a house is 10 times more stressful than building one. For help with that, refer to the original Ten
Commandments.