I’m 35 and have been dating a man 20 years older than me; he is 55. I have a 5-year-old child. Things were going well until we started having conversations about the relationship being serious and possibly merging our assets.
His ideal plan: I move into his current house that he shared with his ex-wife until he can pay it off, which would be in 10 to 15 years and then we could purchase a new home together. He also said that I could help him pay off his house to move the process along quicker. It sounds like your boyfriend kept the house and refinanced in order to pay off his ex-wife. That, plus the burden of these student loans has left him in a pickle. If you move in, rent out your home and pay him rent for the next 15 years, he’ll be free and clear by the time he’s 70.
There’s one thing I do like about this suggestion: you both remain financially independent. Whatever you decide, make sure this is a core tenet of any plan. You have your own home and a 5-year-old child to raise, so I caution you against buying a home with him.You can email The Moneyist with any financial and ethical questions at qfottrell@marketwatch.com, and follow Quentin Fottrell on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.