Why You Might Want to Tell Your Real Estate Agent If Your Partner Snores (Or Eats Chips in Bed)

Real estate agents often joke about having to play the role of a couples therapist for their clients.

Most of the time, it simply involves helping them see eye to eye, or at least compromise, on the style of home they want, where it should be located, or even the paint colors in the houses they’re considering. But sometimes it involves deeper issues related to how they’ll live together or navigate certain family dynamics.

It’s not that agents are necessarily saving marriages (well, maybe once in a while!), so much as giving clients someone to vent to and get some helpful perspective from.

But they can only help you sort through issues they’re aware of.

And one thing you might want to make your agent aware of is whether your partner…wait for it…snores. Or perhaps eats chips in bed. Or watches an annoying TV show while you’re trying to sleep.

Because knowing that, or at least taking it into account yourself, could make the difference between living happily ever after in your new home and eventually turning to your agent for help selling it due to divorce.

Don’t Sleep On This…

Divorce is a strong word. It might even sound a little over the top when the issue is something as seemingly minor as snoring, eating chips, or watching TV.

But according to a recent survey of 2,000 American adults, 17% said they had ended a relationship entirely due to their partner’s disruptive sleeping habits. Another 6% said those habits contributed to their breakup.

Apparently, love may be patient and kind, but for roughly 1 out of every 5 people, that patience only goes so far when it comes to sharing a bedroom.

Of course, most couples aren’t going to break up over one bad night of sleep. But when the same issue happens night after night, exhaustion and resentment can spill into the hours when both people are awake.

Fortunately, the vast majority of people find a way to cope without ending their relationship. And 20% of those surveyed said they dealt with a partner’s disruptive sleep habits by simply sleeping in separate beds or bedrooms.

Should an Extra Bedroom Be on Your Wish List… or Must-Have List?

Couples tend to have plenty of conversations about what they want in their next home.

They discuss the style of house they prefer, how many bedrooms and bathrooms they need, the location, the size of the yard, and perhaps even how they’ll decorate it.

But despite more people becoming comfortable with the idea of sleeping separately, it may not be something every couple thinks to discuss until it becomes an issue.

Couples who have lived together for years may already know exactly how much their sleeping habits clash. In fact, having enough space to sleep separately might be one of the reasons they’re moving.

But couples who haven’t lived together may not know what it’s like to share a bedroom every night. And even couples who already do may have never seriously considered whether sleeping separately occasionally, or permanently, could make them happier.

That doesn’t necessarily mean an entirely separate bedroom needs to become a must-have. Depending on your budget, the solution might be a home office that can accommodate a daybed, a finished basement, a den, or another flexible space. Perhaps it simply means having somewhere one of you can retreat to when snoring, sickness, conflicting schedules, or a midnight potato-chip craving makes sharing a bed less than ideal.

The point isn’t to predict problems or plan for your eventual “sleep divorce.” It’s simply worth having a frank conversation about how you both sleep and what options you might want your next home to provide.

You may even want to loop your real estate agent into the conversation. They’ve probably helped other couples navigate the same issue and may recognize solutions or possibilities in a home that you wouldn’t have considered.

But, just like when they’re playing part-time couples therapist, they can only help with the issues they know about.