Charlotte Divorce Lawyer Blog
Nesting: What is it and Should We Do it?
When couples divorce, it can take a toll on everyone in the family, especially the children. Parents want to do everything they can to make divorce easier and less stressful for their kids. One option to consider is nesting. Nesting is a concept that gives children a stable environment and may be less traumatic for them when the family dynamics change. Some celebrity couples have made nesting more popular. It may be something you and your spouse want to explore as you begin going through the uncoupling process.
What is Nesting?
Nesting in terms of divorce is a parenting custody arrangement where the children live in one house and the parents rotate in and out. This is an alternative to having the children shuttle between each parent. Nesting, or “bird nesting,” is a shared parenting option. In typical parenting agreements, the children reside primarily with one parent, called the primary custodial parent. The non-custodial parent has regular visitation and usually pays child support. Nesting is different in that each parent lives separately from the family home and returns during their specified weeks or days.
Benefits of Nesting
There are several benefits of bird nesting. One of the most significant advantages is that it provides children with more stability than other parenting arrangements. Children may suffer less emotional turmoil and trauma from the divorce when their daily life remains nearly unchanged. Children can remain in the family home and continue to go to the same school, and keep local friendships. Nesting is a way to ensure that both parents have an equal amount of time with their children.
Disadvantages of Nesting
Nesting may come with some potential disadvantages. Nesting means that parents will live a more disruptive lifestyle as they live part-time in the family home and part-time in their own residence. Parents need to commit to the lifestyle until their children are grown. Keeping the family home can be expensive, and it means that they will need to continue joint ownership for an agreed-upon timeframe. Each parent will need to live elsewhere, so together they are keeping three residences.
Tips for Making Nesting Work
Nesting can be a good solution for couples as long as they understand and agree to the conditions ahead of time. Nesting works best for parents who can amicably get along with each other. Good communication is essential to promote a healthy nesting environment for the kids. It is best to put as much detail as possible into an agreement that both parents sign. This contract will serve as a guideline and help to prevent disputes from happening. You will want to address all the current and future concerns to ensure that things go smoothly.
Nesting certainly is not for everyone, but for some couples, it may be the ideal solution for some families. To learn more, contact our legal team at Arnold & Smith, PLLC, at (704) 370-2828 to schedule a consultation.
The family law practice group at Arnold & Smith, PLLC includes four Board-Certified Family Law specialists and one Child Welfare Law specialist, as well as several attorneys with many years of family law experience that are committed to providing a powerful voice to individuals facing the often-tumultuous issues in this area of law. The range of issues our family law clients may be facing include pre- and post-nuptial agreements; separation agreements; post-separation support; child support (both temporary and permanent); absolute divorce; divorce from bed and board; military divorce; equitable distribution of assets; child custody (both temporary and permanent); retirement benefits and divorce; alimony and spousal support; adoption; and emancipation. Because this area of the law is usually emotionally charged and complicated, the family law attorneys at Arnold & Smith, PLLC act with the utmost dedication to ensure that each client understands his or her options, and then act to achieve the best result possible for that client’s particular situation.
Source:
https://www.nccourts.gov/help-topics/divorce-and-marriage/separation-and-divorce
Image Credit:
https://www.freeimages.com/photo/model-house-and-laptop-computer-1983018
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