It helps to be in the same place as the other person(s) and time bomb the agreement. For us, it's: Roughly similar salaries at Microsoft/Amazon Same age Sign

It helps to be in the same place as the other person(s) and time bomb the agreement. For us, it's: Roughly similar salaries at Microsoft/Amazon Same age Significantly overlapping friend groups (which increases house utilization and happiness) Ability to buy the house outright with reserves Significant levels of trust ARM mortgage guarantees that we're going to sell in 5-7 years, so if either of us want out we can generally wait it out in the worst case. It's not an ideal scenario for everyone - I'm very lucky to be where I'm at. But it's very satisfying,and we're fortunate enough to not have to worry about the same financial concerns as others.