After years of arguments and tension, Steve and Diana finally decided to separate. Their mortgage situation, however, meant they were stuck with each other until the stale property market revived. So they came up with a peculiar solution – one week Steve would live in their house while Diana slept on a friend's sofa. The next week, they would swap. The plan unravelled when Steve fell out with his friend and ended up sleeping in his car. Angela Lake-Carroll, an independent family law consultant who advised the couple (their names have been changed), says such situations are far from unusual. She has also dealt with couples who divide a house into upstairs and downstairs with a rigid timetable for kitchen and bathroom use.
在维持了多年争吵不断的紧张关系后，史蒂夫和戴安娜（均为化名）终于决定离婚了。但是，他们按揭贷款的状况意味着，在低迷的房地产市场复活之前，他们将依然彼此纠缠在一起。因此，他们想出了一个独特的解决方案——某一周史蒂夫会住在他们的房子里，而戴安娜则睡在朋友的沙发上；下一周，他们再互换角色。当史蒂夫和他的朋友闹翻，最终在他的汽车里安家之后，这对夫妇的问题才得以解决。为他们提供咨询的家庭法律独立顾问安格拉•莱克-卡罗尔(Angela Lake-Carroll)说，这种情况远算不上异乎寻常。她还服务过这样一对夫妻：两人分居于楼上、楼下，就厨房和浴室的使用制定了严格的时间表。