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Relationships

Mumsnet has not checked the qualifications of anyone posting here. If you need help urgently or expert advice, please see our domestic violence webguide and/or relationships webguide. Many Mumsnetters experiencing domestic abuse have found this thread helpful: Listen up, everybody

Living with a partner and my kids, he has his own food cupboard etc is this normal ?

127 replies

Newlife26 · 16/01/2026 20:48

Been with partner for 9 years, living together for 4. He has a child from a previous relationship and so do I.
Mine lives with us, age 12, his just has sleepovers twice a week.
We have a mortgage together. He earns around £1300 more a month than I do, although I do get Child benefit and £50 per week child maintenance.

All bills are split 50/50, anything that gets spent on the house is 50/50 even down to small amounts.

He does nothing to help me with my child, like lifts to school etc, hardly talks to him, and does nothing with him. I have no help financially, he buys his own food and keeps it separate and will moan if my child uses something of his, like a towel or something.

We never have any conversations about future goals etc, everything just seems to be him or me, theres never a ‘our’.
If I complain about lack of money he tells me to get a better job. And his money is his and mine is mine.

Is this a normal second relationship where you don't have children together ?
Or is this not normal?!

OP posts:
IrisPallida · 17/01/2026 20:20

Newlife26 · 17/01/2026 19:10

Thank you for your understanding.
Its easy for people to say leave bla bla, but its actually a lot harder than said!
I would love just to have a house elsewhere and just up and leave, but the reality is I don

I suspect that you are in this position because you keep taking the easy option and making bad but easier choices... Now it is time to get ready to endure a bit of hardship so that your future is not as shit as your past. And it is just a bit of hardship, OP, plenty of us have had to start over with nothing and even less than nothing. If we can, you can.

What would really help you is to know your exact legal position on the shared ownership of a house where one partner has put in the greater deposit but the value has (apparently) decreased. We can give you advise on the fact that you are in a relationship with a man who loves his wallet more than he loves you, and we can tell you that you are being financially abused and that you are allowing your child to grow up in an abusive situation.

But you need legal & financial advice, because knowledge is power - when you know exactly what the financial situation is, you can find the strength to take the next steps. You may be eligible for Universal Credit for example if you are not living with, and subsidising the property investment of this man.

FairKoala · 22/01/2026 00:43

Newlife26 · 17/01/2026 19:10

Thank you for your understanding.
Its easy for people to say leave bla bla, but its actually a lot harder than said!
I would love just to have a house elsewhere and just up and leave, but the reality is I don

Not many people do.

Most people, men and women have to wait till the marital/shared home is sold before they can physically move on.
Very few people have a spare house to move into.
People spend months living with their stbeh/p waiting for the sale of the house to go through. It’s not pleasant but continuing to live with the current situation is worse

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