Hi, my partner and I are at loggerheads about our financial arrangement which was put in place when we first started living together but now isn’t working due to having kids and me working part time. He earns a lot more than me but has a very stressful job (I mean, REALLY stressful) with very long hours, so I’ve always taken over most of the family stuff and kept in my job without trying to climb the ladder because it’s flexible around family life, handy for school etc.
Even though he contributes double what I do to the family pot he’s also able to save a lot more than me and he wants to retire early so he can get out of his job, which I understand, but I’m pissed off with this as I’ve been raising a young family on top of my job and have also been busting my guts and would like to retire early if he’s going to.
He’s willing to negotiate but we just can’t agree on an equitable split and don’t want to get married and we therefore both want someone to help us reach an agreement. I thought seeing a mediator might help, as they help couples decide on an equitable split when getting divorced (which we’re not) but is there a better way? A lawyer would help I’m sure but thinking a mediator would be much more reasonable?