Deciding who gets primary custody during a Maryland divorce is never easy. Even if you and your spouse are splitting custody 50/50 and are on good terms, constantly going back and forth between your homes can be exhausting for your young children.
One modern custody arrangement is “nesting.” With nesting, the children will remain in the home 24/7 while the parents take turns residing there.
Pros to nesting
Oftentimes, the parent who wins primary custody will be the one who is also awarded the family house. This is because the court doesn’t want to disrupt the children’s life any more than they have to.
Nesting allows the children to stay in place and spend an equal amount of time with both parents. The parents will each stay at the family home for a week at a time, and swap out with the other parent at the end of the week.
This gives the child more stability and reduces the strain placed on them. It can also ensure that both parents get an equal amount of time with the child, which will ease tensions and reduce resentment.
Cons of nesting
Nesting isn’t the easiest custody arrangement to maintain. It can become tedious for the parents to constantly be coming and going from the family home.
It’s also an expensive custody arrangement. Instead of just one parent moving out, both parents will have to have their own apartments and pay for the family home on top of that.
Why it’s good for parents too
Despite the expense, nesting is actually a really good custody arrangement for parents too. Not only are both parents getting an equal amount of time with the children without any hassle, but both parents are getting an equal time away from the kids too.
This can prevent burnout from one parent being the primary guardian during the week. It’s also easier to get back into dating without having to worry about exposing your kids to new people.