[victory_kajal]

We do have an institution like marriage. But why do people choose to live in cohabitation? Do you think there are any advantages?

:confused:

[Fr_Chuck]

It makes it easier to move on, to break up. It is the idea of a disposable relationship.

Once married, they have legal division of property issues, there is official forms. So not getting married by many is an idea that the relationship is not a forever relationshiip, no real commitment.

And sadly too many getting married don't really have a good commitment either now adays.

[Synnen]

Cohabitation is a way to cut down on costs (1 apartment is cheaper than 2, especially if you're spending a lot of time at one place anyway, 1 electric bill, lower phone bills, etc).

I lived with my husband for 5 years before we got married. There was never a question of commitment, just a question of how we were going to make ends meet.

To SOME people, it is a way to act married without the commitment. For others, it's a way to save money, to be there for each other, and to show commitment BEFORE marriage.

[Tuscany]

I also lived with my husband for 3 years before we got married. We both knew that we were going to be married, but a house came for sale in our town that we both loved, and we decided to buy the house.

We knew all along that we were committed to each other, to our relationship, and to our future. Like Synnen, it was never about an easy way out. It instead was a way to ensure that our future family had a home in a town that we loved. If I had to do it again... I would in a heart beat.

On a side note- my husband and I are very Catholic... we go to church every week, and are active in the church community. When we went through Pre Cana both the priest that married us, and the sister that helped us plan our wedding did not find fault in us living together.

[RubyPitbull]

victory, marriage and cohabitation are a personal life choice. As such, you are going to receive a lot of different opinions. Is there a specific reason why you are asking this question?

Cohabitation is advantageous to those who are unsure if they want to make a life commitment to someone, or who just want to save money for a period, or who simply aren't interested in marriage and don't believe a piece of paper will make a difference to them. The reasoning is vast, it can be complicated, and the advantages are usually of a personal nature, as you are seeing by the answers given here.

There are elderly people who choose to cohabitate because they cannot afford to lose the income that social security brings. When they get married, the government will reduce the amount of their checks. So, rather than marry, even if they want to marry, they forego it, to receive the additional income.

I can think of a couple seriously big disadvantages to cohabitation. If paperwork is not in place, such as a healthcare proxy to name only one, and your partner becomes gravely ill and is unable to make a conscious or sound decision, you have no absolutely no rights. So, for example, if your partner is in a terrible accident and becomes comatose, his/her closest relative, get to decide your partner's medical care, not you. You are suddenly an outsider. If your partner dies without a will, and you both have been living in a home that is owned solely by your partner, again, you have no rights. The partner's closest relative(s) inherit it. How many people do you know of that are kind enough to recognize the relationship and sign everything over to the surviving partner? I don't know of too many people that are that unselfish. Another problem is social security. Again, if you are over a certain age or have children together, and your partner dies, it doesn't matter how long you have been living together as "man and wife." Depending on the state you live in (in the U.S.) the partner in most cases, will be unable to collect on the other's social security.

The bottom line is, there are advantages and disadvantages to both circumstances. It all depends on the people involved and the arrangements and agreements that are in place.