- Two single mothers in Maryland bought an $835,000 Fourplex and moved in with their kids during the pandemic.
- Women share the burden of raising children and support each other by owning their own homes after divorce.
- This house-sharing arrangement is known as a “mommune,” or commune for single mothers.
Two single mothers decided to live under one roof with their children during the pandemic so they could support each other through their post-divorce life.
For longtime friends Holly Harper and Herrin Hopper, the idea was to share the responsibilities of raising children and how to get home ownership despite not being in a traditional relationship. new york times report.
“We want our children to be safe, we want them to have the support they deserve as human beings, and real estate is the economic cornerstone of that,” Hopper told the New York Times. “The most logical thing in the world is to share.”
The New York Times reported that the two women bought an $835,000 Fourplex in Maryland in April 2020 and are now living together with their children. Harper and his 10-year-old daughter live downstairs, and Hopper is 10. His 1-year-old son and his 15-year-old daughter live upstairs.
According to The New York Times, Harper and Hopper refer to each other as platonic spouses and have tenants who rent out the basement. They left the last unit on the second floor vacant and turned it into a common space for everyone to enjoy.
They named their house “Siren House” after the half-bird, half-woman creature in Greek mythology. washington post It was previously reported in March 2022.
In 2022, there will be 10.9 million single-parent family groups with children under the age of 18 in the United States, according to the US. United States Census Bureau. And 80% of these single-parent households were managed by mothers.
However, single-parent household units more likely to live in povertyand other problems.
“We say, ‘We need villages,’ but who is building them?” Harper told The Washington Post. “That’s what we do.”
In response, more and more single mothers like Harper and Hopper are forming ‘mamanes’ who can share resources and work through motherhood together without a lover, The New York Times. reports.
“In the patriarchal and heteronormative narrative, either you divorce and keep living in the house, or you buy another house and live this isolated life, date there, fall in love again, remarry, or stay in the family. It’s a fusion of,” Hopper told the New York Times. “It always seems like a dichotomy, but we dispelled the myth that he had only one way to go.”
