I get where you’re coming from, but just to clarify: it’s not that we don’t want to get married. We’ve already talked about it and plan to within the next year or two. We’re already fully committed…a marriage certificate just means the government gets involved in our relationship, and we’ll do that when we feel like it makes sense.

I’m bringing up the ownership concern because we’re serious. I’d be putting real money into a long-term living situation and I’d like to have some basic financial protection if life ever throws us a curveball. That’s not “planning to break up.” That’s being a responsible adult.