The Phenomenon Of Divorce Couples Staying Together, What's The Reason?

JAKARTA - Divorce is usually synonymous with separated homes, separated assets and of course separated ways. However, recently there was a new trend that was quite surprising, namely that couples who had officially divorced still chose to stay at home.

One of the stories that had been in the spotlight came from the United States. Reporting from the AOL page, Ryan Hambry and Morgan Dickson, the couple who officially divorced in April 2025, decided to stay together in Cape Canaveral, Florida.

Hambry occupies a beach flower, while Dickson lives in a tiny trailer parked in the yard. They did it because of money.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many people took advantage of the decline in home loan interest. Hambry and Dickson managed to get a loan interest of only 2%. Compared to now, when interest on home loans in the US has reached more than 6%.

If they decide to sell houses and buy new places to live, monthly installments can increase drastically. With 2% interest, their house installments are around 1,064 US dollars or Rp. 17 million per month.

But if calculated at 6.3% interest, the installments could jump to 1,782 US dollars or Rp29 million per month. The difference is almost US$718 or Rp12 million per month. No wonder Hambry and Dickson are willing to live together even though they are divorced.

"Financially, it can be regulated. But it's a more difficult personal limit," Hambry told the Wall Street Journal.

This phenomenon has a special term, namely nesting. The concept is simple, children stay at home, while divorced parents take turns entering and leaving according to their care schedule.

According to the BBC, this practice has been around in Sweden for a long time since the 1970s. Now that the cost of the house is getting more and more expensive, nesting is becoming popular in America and other countries. A survey in the UK found that about 11% of divorced couples had tried this method.

In addition to financial reasons, nesting is also considered to be able to maintain the mental stability of children. Children do not need to move their homes, so they still feel safe in the same environment.

Of course, living at home after divorce is not without problems. Many experts emphasize that this method is not suitable for couples whose divorce is full of conflict.

Netting gains:

- Save costs, especially if you already have installments with low interest rates.

- The kids still feel stable because they don't have to move around.

- Could be a temporary solution while managing a new life.

Lack of nesting:

- Vulnerable to trigger a new conflict if the boundaries are not clear.

- Can cause confusion in children, as if their parents will return together.

- Need written rules regarding costs, schedules and privacy so as not to cause problems in the future

Experts say this phenomenon can be more widespread because many people are trapped in the so-called lock-in effect. They are reluctant to sell houses because they are tied to low interest rates. As a result, the home market is getting narrower and prices tend to rise.

Hambry and Dickson are just one example of how divorced couples can still live in the same place for economic reasons.

It sounds complicated, but with house installments that can save hundreds of thousands of dollars in the long term, it's natural for many people to start looking at this method.