Why my boyfriend doesn't want to get engaged and did too comfortable in relationship?

My boyfriend (33) and I (27) have been in a relationship for seven years. We’ve had our ups and downs, but overall, I’d say we make a pretty good couple. We've lived together for three years, but I recently moved to another city for college. I plan to return to the city where he lives once I finish, and we’ll live together again. We’re both comfortable with this arrangement, and he’s supportive of my education. He has also expressed that he’s looking forward to us living together again.

My boyfriend values equality and believes that men and women should be completely equal in a relationship. When we lived together, we split household bills and responsibilities 50/50. Personally, I hold more traditional values—I appreciate when a man takes on the provider role, covers dates, and acts as the head of the family. I’m also happy to cook and contribute in other ways, as long as my partner is willing to provide for us. However, since my boyfriend doesn’t share this perspective, I’ve adapted to his values, and we continue to split everything equally, even though it doesn’t fully align with my beliefs. I sometimes wonder if compromising on this will affect our relationship in the long run, but for now, I’m trying to make it work.

Lately, I’ve been feeling ready to move to the next stage in our relationship. From the very beginning, I expressed that I want to be engaged one day. I’ve recently told my boyfriend that I’m ready for that step, and while he also says he wants to get married someday, he hasn’t given me a clear reason why he’s not ready for an engagement yet. He says it’s "not the right time" and that we both need to have our lives in order before planning something like that. He has also mentioned that he believes in a “mutual engagement.” However, I have more traditional views and I believe the man should propose, and I have no interest in proposing to him. Honestly, I don’t even care much about getting married, I’d be happy just being engaged. I just don’t like the idea of still being a “girlfriend” after seven years together. I want my boyfriend to show more effort and dedication to our relationship.

Whenever I bring this up, he avoids answering, turns it into a joke, or says it's not the right time. Sometimes, he even gets defensive.

Since I’m planning to move back to his city soon, I’ve been wondering if I should rent my own place instead of living with him again. At this point, I feel like I’m doing "wife duties for girlfriend benefits," and I’m starting to question whether living together again makes sense. I also wonder if my boyfriend has simply gotten too comfortable in our relationship. He doesn’t know about my plans yet, but I feel like getting my own place might serve as a wake-up call and push him to propose.

What do you think?