There are certain vulnerabilities and insecurities that go along with not being linked to another person in a contractual way, even if it's an unspoken contract. People in New York manage that pretty well. I prefer choice and desire over convention and limitation.
There's an unspoken rule in affluent circles that suggests you can always define an individual's status by measuring his or her proximity to the most influential person in the room. And as the maxim goes, closer is always better.