Yes and no. It is rather unfortunate that splitting up costs so much. But at the same time, these folks lose all of the protections and benefits that the legal

Yes and no. It is rather unfortunate that splitting up costs so much. But at the same time, these folks lose all of the protections and benefits that the legal framework of marriage gives. For example, health insurance coverage will not extend to your loved one without the legal framework for it to exist. You might have raised your partner's child since birth or not long after their father/mother passed on, but you'll have no legal right to them if something happens. Even something as simple as taking care of school business for the children gets muddy. You, in general, will not get a say in their care during an emergency situation. Being low income also generally means you do not have the means to have such a legal paper put into place. It also means that you do not get any sort of protection or help with breaking up. No one is going to step in to say that you have to share the apartment until you save up money or that one should be the one to move out, let alone help to make sure that each of you gets to keep a vehicle if they were both in one person's name.